Bridging farmers’ non-cognitive and self-conscious emotional factors to cognitive determinants of climate change adaptation in southwest Iran

ABSTRACT

Farm-level adaptation is an effective strategy to cope with global climate change. Farmers can effectively manage the negative effects of climate change with adaptive decisions. Cognitive, non-cognitive and emotional factors influence adaptive decisions against climate change. However, little research addresses the extent to which a set of integrated factors influence a farmer's intention to adapt. To address this gap, this study aims to determine, first, the relationship between cognitive factors, including awareness, attitude, subjective norm and perceived behaviour control; non-cognitive factors including habits and moral norms; as well as emotional factors, including anticipated pride and guilt surrounding adaptation intention. Second, it evaluates an integrated structural model using SmartPLS, a software commonly used in partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), wherein all these factors are examined simultaneously. A survey was conducted to fulfil these objectives, involving 250 farmers from Susangerd city in the Khuzestan province of southwestern Iran. Results reveal that positive emotions (pride), cognitive constructs, (perceived behaviour control and awareness), as well as non-cognitive factors, (behavioural habits and moral norms) affect adaptation intention. Findings provide guidance to policymakers, and agricultural experts who are considering different factors in designing and implementing policies and innovations related to climate change adaptation.

KEYWORDS:

• Adaptation
• climate change
• moral norm
• anticipated pride
• anticipated guilt
• awareness
• habit

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Masoud Yazdanpanah

Masoud Yazdanpanah is a Professor of Agricultural Extension and Education at the Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Iran, and a Research Scholar at the International Institute of Applied System Analysis. He has conducted extensive research in various fields including agricultural extension, rural development, and conservation social sciences. His diverse research interests encompass the diffusion and effects of innovations, organic agriculture, climate change adaptation, water management, and the adoption of renewable energy.

Seyedeh Bahar Homayoon

Seyedeh Bahar Homayoon is a Ph.D. candidate at the Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan and an Information Communication Technology expert at Fars Strategic Consultant in Iran. Her field of expertise includes the diffusion and impacts of modern irrigation systems and smart irrigation systems. She has conducted research in various fields, including online education in agriculture, climate change adaptation, water resources management, and digital agriculture.

Tahereh Zobeidi

Tahereh Zobeidi is a Research Assistant at the International Institute of Applied System Analysis. She holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Environmental Education from the University of Zanjan, Iran, as well as MSc and B.S. degrees in Agricultural Extension and Education from the Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Iran. Her research is centered on the application of social and psychological sciences in conserving natural resources, and addressing water scarcity and climate change. Her work aims to achieve both social and environmental sustainability in the developing world.

Kyle Maurice Woosnam

Kyle Maurice Woosnam, Ph.D., is a Professor within the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources at the University of Georgia. He conducts community-based research on topics pertaining to interactions and relationships between destination residents and visitors, sustainable tourism planning and development, and social-cultural and economic impacts of tourism. Over the last 20 years, he has undertaken research in 30 countries across six continents.

Katharina Löhr

Katharina Löhr is deputy head of the department ‘Sustainable Land Use in Developing Countries’ at Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) in Germany and affiliated researcher at Humboldt Universität zu Berlin. She holds a PhD in agricultural sciences (HU Berlin) and an MSc in Peace and Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS, UK). Her research focuses on social-ecological transformation; in particular the nexus of sustainable land use practices, social cohesion, and peacebuilding, questions on adoption and co-design of innovations.

Stefan Sieber

Stefan Sieber holds a Professorship at Humboldt University zu Berlin and he coordinates as Resource and Environmental Economist the department SusLAND “Sustainable Land Use in Developing Countries” at the Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF). Stefan Sieber focuses on socio-economics for sustainability transformation of food systems in Africa, Latin America and Asia. He applies mixed method approaches of inter- and transdisciplinary research methods in the frame of co-design of innovation, policy and governance analysis. Stefan Sieber completed his doctorate in the area of agricultural economy with focus on resource and environmental economics of the University of Bonn. The Venia Legendi through his second degree PhD (Habilitation) allows him lecturing four different master's programs in the frame of “Environmental Sociology and Environmental Policy” at the Humboldt University Berlin. He (co-)coordinated 40 international research projects, authored/co-authored 260 peer-reviewed publications as well as more than 100 conference contributions.