The Impact of Environmental Regulations and Social Norms on Farmers’ Chemical Fertilizer Reduction Behaviors: An Investigation of Citrus Farmers in Southern China

Abstract

This study investigates how environmental regulations and social norms affect farmers’ chemical fertilizer reduction behaviors (CFRBs) and investigates the mediating role played by social norms and the moderating role played by social networks. As the analysis tool, a structural equation model is employed to analyze the data collected from a questionnaire survey with 402 valid samples of Chinese citrus growers. This study reveals that (1) environmental regulations and social norms have a significant effect on farmers’ CFRBs; (2) injunctive social norms are a partial mediator of the relationship between incentive-based environmental regulations and farmers’ CFRBs; (3) social networks play a positive moderating role in the relationship between injunctive social norms and farmers’ CFRBs; and (4) large-scale farmers’ CFRBs are more susceptible to the impact of environmental regulations and social norms than small-scale farmers. The result of this study provides a significant scientific foundation for the Chinese agricultural sector to develop policies to combat soil pollution in agriculture.

Enforcement of environmental protection protocols and compliance amongst Micro Small and Medium Enterprises inZimbabwe: Is institutional credibility effectual in the presence of corruption tendencies?

“…The effectiveness of the environmental management authorities in developing countries in ensuring compliance of MSMEs with environmental protection standards is compromised by gaps and weaknesses in environmental regulatory frameworks and lack of funding and expertise (Eskeland & Jimenez, 1992). The potency of such weak regulatory power to induce MSMEs' compliance with environmental regulations leans heavily on institutional trust of the regulatory agencies by owners of MSMEs (Cui & Liu, 2022). Even in the presence of sufficient regulatory power as in developed countries, Rhodes et al (2017) proposes that compliance with regulations is a function of trust in the institutions since people might not have sufficient time or skills to independently assess the regulated issues.…”

“…The strength of enforcement in inducing compliance to environmental standards is likely to be facilitated by trust in the institutions that enact laws and policies, or those that exercise government authority to enforce the laws and policies (Cui & Liu, 2022). Institutional trust has been linked with enhanced compliance to environmental regulations in a variety of settings (see e.g., Cvetkovich, Siegrist, Murray & Tragesser, 2002;Fairbrother, Johansson Sevä & Kulin, 2019;Kulin & Johansson Sevä, 2021;Greenstone & Hanna, 2014;Hammar & Jagers, 2006;Rhodes, Axsen & Jaccard, 2014;Harring & Jagers, 2013;Jagers & Hammar, 2009;Kallbekken & Saelen, 2011;Kitt, Axsen, Long & Rhodes, 2021;Siegrist, Cvetkovich & Roth, 2000).…”

Impact of the Implementation of Environmental Management Systems in Agribusiness Worldwide. A Systematic Review

“…Concientizar a los agricultores a reducir la utilización de fertilizantes químicos [53] China fijó un nuevo objetivo más alto para controlar las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero para 2020, para lograr este objetivo, China está liderando el mundo en términos de capacidad hidroeléctrica instalada y también aumentando la capacidad de almacenamiento. Además de alcanzar el 20,36% de superficie forestal, la capacidad de construcción de energía eólica, áreas de captación de energía solar y centrales nucleares.…”

Effect of agricultural subsidies on heterogeneous farmers’ fertilizer application intensity and its mediating mechanism: Based on China household finance survey database

“…Yang et al (2021) found that the fertilizer reduction effect of agricultural subsidies was positively related to the degree of part-time farming. A study by Cui and Liu (2022) on 402 citrus growers in China showed that the government's services and subsidies for green agriculture had a significant incentive effect on farmers' chemical fertilizer reduction behavior, and the effect was greater for larger farmers; the stronger the awareness of green agriculture among farmers' neighbors, the greater this effect would be. Niu et al (2022) argued that policy agricultural insurance pilots exacerbated fertilizer surface source pollution in China, and this effect was relatively more pronounced in eastern and high disaster areas.…”