Factors Affecting the Adaptive Behavior of Farmers in Kermanshah Province under Water Scarcity Conditions: The Role of Risk Perception and Self-Efficacy in the Theory of Planned Behavior

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

• Yousof Azadi ¹
• Jafar Yaghoubi ¹
• Heydar Gholizadeh ¹
• Saeed Gholamrezai ²
• Fatemeh Rahimi-Feyzabad ²

¹ Development, Department of Agricultural Extension, Communication and Rural Development, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran.

² Department of Agriculture Economic and Rural Development, Faculty of Agriculture, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran

10.22067/geoeh.2023.81661.1347

Abstract

water scarcity is one of the risks of the agricultural sector, especially in arid and semi-arid regions, and it is predicted that its situation will worsen in the future. To minimize the effects of water scarcity on the agricultural sector, water-scarce countries such as Iran must adopt effective adaptation strategies. This requires investigating the influencing factors on the behavior and adaptation intention of actors in the agricultural sector. Therefore, the present research was conducted to identify factors influencing the behavior of water scarcity adaptation among farmers in Kermanshah province. The statistical population of this research was 32,753 irrigated wheat farmers of Kermanshah province, and a sample of 380 of them were selected for the research using the multi-stage cluster sampling method with the proportional assignment and based on the Krejcie and Morgan table. Data collection in this research was done through a researcher-made questionnaire. To check the validity of the research tool, face, and construct validity were used. Also, the reliability of the research tool was confirmed by calculating Cronbach's alpha coefficient (0.848-0.895) and composite reliability for the research variables. Data analysis was done using SPSS26 and AMOS24 software. The results showed that the three main constructs of the theory of planned behavior including attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control had a positive and significant effect on behavioral intention. On the other hand, the perceived behavioral control variable affected adaptive behavior. Also, in the theory of planned behavior, 56% of the variance of behavioral intention and 53% of the variance of adaptation behavior to water scarcity were explained, and by adding the variables of risk perception and self-efficacy to the theory of planned behavior, the explanation percentage of behavioral intention and adaptive behavior increased to 58 and 62%, respectively.

Keywords

• water scarcity
• adaptation behavior
• risk perception
• self-efficacy
• farmers

Main Subjects

• مخاطرات محیط ‌های روستایی

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