Human population behavioural traits matters to explain terrestrial protected area coverage

Biodiversity loss demands urgent action, and protected area are one of the cornerstone of biodiversity conservation measure. While conservation efforts are known to be driven by economic and political factors, there is an absence of literature addressing the potential role played by behavioural traits at the population level. We investigated how population-level behavioural traits influence the proportion of terrestrial protected area by using large-scale cross-cultural surveys and geospatial data from 75 countries. We show that behavioural traits explain more variation in protected area coverage than economic indicators alone. Furthermore, trust is negatively associated with protected area coverage at the country level, suggesting that high-trust societies rely more on informal conservation practices. These findings challenge conventional models focused on economic and governance drivers and highlight the need for policies that align with population behaviours. Integrating behavioural insights into conservation planning could unlock more effective biodiversity conservation strategies in the era of environmental changes.