Food waste has become a severe problem worldwide, causing adverse effects on the economy, society, and environment. Previous research on the determinants of food waste has been dominated by qualitative research, mainly focusing on the cognitive and emotional factors as antecedents but ignoring the impact of contextual factors (e.g., exposure to nature). Using three experimental studies, we examined the effect of exposure to nature on the intention to reduce food waste and the underlying psychological mechanisms. The results indicate that exposure to nature can increase an individual’s intention to reduce food waste. Moreover, self-transcendence mediates the relationship between exposure to nature and the intention to reduce food waste. Openness to experience moderates the indirect impact of exposure to nature on the intention to reduce food waste via self-transcendence, such that the positive impact of exposure to nature on self-transcendence disappears among individuals with low levels of openness to experience. The findings enrich our understanding of the relationship between exposure to nature and the intention to reduce food waste and provide policymakers and marketers with tools to increase individuals’ intention to reduce food waste by creating opportunities to engage with natural elements.

食物浪费已成为世界范围内的一个严重问题，对经济、社会和环境造成不利影响。以往关于食物浪费决定因素的研究一直以定性研究为主，主要关注认知和情感因素作为前因，而忽略了背景因素（例如，接触自然）的影响。通过三项实验研究，我们研究了接触大自然对减少食物浪费的意图的影响以及潜在的心理机制。结果表明，接触大自然可以增加个人减少食物浪费的意愿。此外，自我超越调节了接触自然与减少食物浪费的意图之间的关系。体验开放性缓和了接触自然对通过自我超越减少食物浪费的意图的间接影响，因此接触自然对自我超越的积极影响在体验开放度低的个体中消失了。这些发现丰富了我们对接触自然与减少食物浪费的意图之间关系的理解，并为政策制定者和营销人员提供了工具，通过创造接触自然元素的机会来提高个人减少食物浪费的意图。