The ancients knew it already: how Stoic philosophy explains the link between mindfulness, emotion regulation and pro-environmental behaviours (Los antiguos ya lo sabían: cómo explica la filosofía estoica el vínculo entre mindfulness, regulación emocional y la conducta proambiental)

Abstract

ABSTRACT A growing body of research suggests that there might be a strong link between (1) a specific way of applying a non-judgemental and present-centred attention to what seems to be an outer reality, known as mindfulness, (2) using emotion-regulation strategies (such as, for example, cognitive reappraisal) and (3) adopting a more sustainable lifestyle, implying a self-aware caring for the natural environment and the resources therein. The relationship between these factors, which we call here ‘the triple link’, has been supported by recent empirical data, from independent studies, using different approaches, across various disciplines. We present in this article a philosophical explanation of this relationship, based on the Ancient Stoic School of Philosophy, which can also be found in other ancient Western and Eastern philosophies. These reflections open a different perspective on the urgent issues of lifestyle change and behavioural interventions needed to cope with the potential environmental catastrophe, a perspective that reaches out of psychology and includes the metaphysical dimension in the understanding of people–environment relations.