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The effect of farmer well-being on the uptake of environmental good management practices

Knook, J.
Dorner, Z.
Stahlmann-Brown, P.
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Conference Contribution - unpublished
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Abstract
Background: Farm-level activities impact on the environment and it is therefore important that farmers adopt environmentally friendly farming practices. Although a range of practices have been developed, biophysical, economic and behavioural heterogeneity of farms complicates implementation. Attempts to increase the uptake of environmentally friendly farming practices have been strongly reliant on the voluntary engagement of farmers, which is dependent on myriad factors. A major overlooked factor is how well-being might influence this uptake. Objective: The aim of this paper is to explore the relationship between farmer well-being and environmental practice adoption. We hypothesise that higher well-being is associated with higher interest into future adoption of environmental friendly practices. Methods: The participants included in this study were drawn from the 2021 Survey of Rural Decision Makers. The survey questions were designed based on the WHO5, a widely used short scale survey for wellbeing. This was followed by questions about environmental practice adoption over the upcoming two years. This allowed identification of the relationship between environmental practice adoption and wellbeing. Results: The initial analysis used a series of linear regression analyses to explore the relationship between the future adoption of environmental practices and wellbeing. Initial results will be presented during the conference. Contribution: The contribution of this paper is two-fold. Firstly, it adds to literature by identifying the relationship of farmer well-being and adoption of environmentally friendly farming practices. Secondly, it increases understanding into the complexity of farmer decision-making, which will create more insight into the support needed, e.g. how future extension programmes can be designed to stimulate the uptake of environmentally friendly farming practices, while also supporting farmer well-being.
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