The Moral Status of Nature: Characterisation of the Orientations of Biocentric and Anthropocentric Beliefs / El estatus moral de la naturaleza: caracterización de las orientaciones de creencias biocéntricas y antropocéntricas

The goal of this research is to study the psychosocial differences between two profiles of environmental ethics, namely biocentrism and anthropocentrism, which entail greater and lesser moral inclusivity, respectively. It studies their correlates and both orientations’ relationship with a behavioural commitment to social and environmental causes. Regarding methodology, an online questionnaire was used with a sample of 353 participants. Descriptive, correlative, regression and mediation analyses were performed to check the hypotheses. The results indicate that biocentrism and anthropocentrism are two distinct orientations of beliefs about the moral status of living beings. Biocentric beliefs play an important role in involvement in social participation actions for causes both human and nature-related, while anthropocentric beliefs do not have this capacity for mobilisation. Finally, given that the results provide new evidence, possible theoretical and practical implications and future avenues of research are discussed.