Gao Yuling, Khan Arshad Ahmad, Khan Sufyan Ullah, Ali Muhammad Abu Sufyan, Huai Jianjun
College of Economics and Management, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, People's Republic of China.
Department of Economics and Finance, UiS Business School, University of Stavanger, 4036, Stavanger, Norway.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2023 Mar 30:1-19. doi: 10.1007/s11356-023-26630-0.
In China, agricultural activities are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, ranking second only to another significant source. This presents a significant obstacle to reducing emissions and jeopardizes both the availability of food and the sustainable growth of agriculture. It is primarily the farmers who utilize cultivated land and are thus accountable for the initiation of these emissions. Farmers' role is significant in adopting green and low-carbon (LC) agricultural production practices, and their actions are directly tied to the achievement of the dual goals of carbon reduction. Understanding their motivations for engaging in LC production and the factors that influence their willingness to do so is important for both theory and practice. In this study, data was collected from 260 questionnaires in 13 counties across five major cities in Shaanxi Province. The purpose was to identify factors that impact farmers' motivation and willingness to engage in LC agriculture using linear regression analysis. A structural equation model was constructed to better understand the underlying mechanisms that influence farmers' actions towards LC farming practices. The study's findings indicate that (1) farmers' behavior towards LC production practices is notably impacted by internal motivation based on joy and internal motivation based on responsibility (IMR); (2) IMR has the most pronounced effect on farmers' adoption of LC production practices; (3) the internal motivation based on joy, IMR, behavior attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavior control are related to each other; and (4) the multi-group analysis of the data indicates that the impact of internal motivation based on joy and IMR on adopting sustainable farming practices may vary among different groups. It is essential to support farmers who have strong intrinsic motivation to engage in sustainable agriculture. Additionally, policymakers must promote positive attitudes towards sustainable farming to achieve the desired environmental (LC) objectives.
在中国，农业活动是温室气体排放的主要来源之一，仅次于另一个重要来源。这对减排构成了重大障碍，危及粮食供应和农业的可持续发展。主要是农民利用耕地，因此应对这些排放的产生负责。农民在采用绿色低碳农业生产方式方面的作用重大，他们的行动直接关系到碳减排双重目标的实现。了解他们从事低碳生产的动机以及影响他们这样做意愿的因素，对理论和实践都很重要。在本研究中，从陕西省五个主要城市的13个县的260份问卷中收集了数据。目的是通过线性回归分析确定影响农民从事低碳农业的动机和意愿的因素。构建了一个结构方程模型，以更好地理解影响农民对低碳农业实践行动的潜在机制。研究结果表明：（1）农民对低碳生产实践的行为受到基于喜悦的内在动机和基于责任的内在动机（IMR）的显著影响；（2）IMR对农民采用低碳生产实践的影响最为显著；（3）基于喜悦的内在动机、IMR、行为态度、主观规范和感知行为控制相互关联；（4）数据的多组分析表明，基于喜悦的内在动机和IMR对采用可持续农业实践的影响在不同群体中可能有所不同。支持有强烈内在动机从事可持续农业的农民至关重要。此外，政策制定者必须促进对可持续农业的积极态度，以实现预期的环境（低碳）目标。
