News Reader.info

Download PDF Article Open access Published: 02 January 2025 The analysis on forest farmers’ intention to participate in construction of the National Reserve Forest Project and its driving

factors Yang Song1, Youzhi Wang2 & Gaocheng Hu1  Scientific Reports volume 15, Article number: 182 (2025) Cite this article

1001 Accesses

Metrics details

The construction of the National Reserve Forest Project is the fundamental measure to alleviate the contradiction between national wood supply and demand and maintain national ecological

security and wood security. This study analyzed the forest farmers’ intention to participate in the project and its driving factors. It provides a scientific basis for mobilizing forest

farmers’ enthusiasm for continuous participation, improving their sense of gain, and realizing the established goals of constructing the National Reserve Forest Project. Based on the planned

behavior theory, this study built a driving factor model regarding participation intention. From February to April 2022, forest farmers in the National Reserve Forest Project implementation

area in Guizhou Province were selected as research objects for the questionnaire survey. A binary logistic regression model was used to verify and investigate the forest farmers’

participation intention and driving factors. Among the behavioral attitudes, income from participation in forest land transfer had a significant and positive correlation with concerns about

forest use change. In the subjective norms, the study found a significant positive correlation between the degree of self-determination of forest farmers in participating in the project and

the level of support from local government, village collectives, previously participating villagers, and family members. In perceived behavior control, qualification for project

participation and acceptance of participation risk have a significant and positive correlation. The model based on planned behavior theory can well explain and predict the forest farmers’

intention to participate and driving factors. Currently, most forest farmers have a strong sense of intention to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project. Economic benefits,

partners’ support in participation, guidance from superiors, and participation risk are important driving factors.

determinants of residents’ ecological conservation in rural tourism development Article Open access 13 January 2025 Integrating the norm activation model and theory of planned behaviour to

investigate farmer pro-environmental behavioural intention Article Open access 05 April 2023 Empirical model of public participation intention in biomass project based on integrated TAM-TPB

model Article Open access 24 February 2025 Introduction

Along with the rapid development of China’s economy and society, there is an increasingly prominent contradiction between wood supply and demand. Domestic rare and big-diameter wood faces

long-term structural shortages, and wood imports encounter more restrictions than before. Ecological security and wood safety have become the cognitive basis for critical issues such as

international wood trade, domestic forest cultivation, and domestic wood industry development. In 2013 and 2017, the No.1 document (The first document is issued annually by the Central

People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China. It has now become a term that the Chinese government attaches importance to related issues in this field) of the Central Committee

proposed twice to strengthen the construction of the National Reserve Forest Project bases. National reserve forests project refers to multi-functional forests created and cultivated in

areas with suitable natural conditions through intensive plantation, replanting, tending, and replanting measures to meet the needs of economic and social development and people’s better

lives for high-quality timber. These forests include industrial raw material forests, native tree species, rare tree species, and large-diameter timber forests. In 2018, the “Plan for the

Construction of the National Reserve Forest Project (2018-2035)” proposed to build 20 million hectares of the National Reserve Forest Project by 2035, with an annual average net increase of

200 million cubic meters in forest stock, an annual increase of 63 million cubic meters in rare local tree species and big diameter wood, so that China is self-sufficient in general wood.

Under carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals, the National Reserve Forest Project construction is an important guarantee to improve the comprehensive production capacity of forestry,

improve the quantity and quality of wood products, and also the cornerstone to increase forestry assets and forestry carbon resources significantly. Since the project’s inception, over 140

billion CNY has been allocated, constructing over 92 million mu of the National Reserve Forest Project and achieving 30% of the predetermined target. China’s construction of the National

Reserve Forest Project is in the initial stage, which is mainly to implement the transfer of forest rights, purchase, store trees, and develop the under-forest economy1. The central part of

the reform of the collective forest rights system in China, which began in 2008, has been completed, and the original collectively owned forest land has now been distributed to individual

forest farmers. Forest farmers with contracting and management rights over forest land are the National Reserve Forest Project’s basic units and indispensable subjects. For the National

Reserve Forest Project, forest farmers can provide labor and important production factors such as forest lands and trees. However, the National Reserve Forest Project has a long cycle and

unstable profit from wood sales, which objectively increases the risk that forest farmers withdraw from the project construction and break the contract, and once the forest farmers withdraw,

a series of negative consequences will follow2. Therefore, to fully mobilize forest farmers’ enthusiasm for project participation, understanding the forest farmers’ intention to participate

in the project construction and its driving factors is a critical issue to be solved in the smooth promotion of the National Reserve Forest Project.

The intention is the most important predictor of actual behavior, reflecting the degree to which people are willing to exert effort to implement a specific behavior. Existing research shows

a close relationship between “intention-behavior”. Generally speaking, the more robust an individual’s intention, the more likely the actual behavior will occur. Many scholars use intention

as a proxy for behavior in their studies. Therefore, this article will also focus on studying the intention of forest farmers’ participation in the National Reserve Forest Project, namely

the participation tendency of forest farmers in the project implementation area of the National Reserve Forest Project when facing many complex factors.

The literature on public participation intentions in agricultural and forestry engineering projects has developed mainly from: micro and macro perspectives. On the one hand, the factors

influencing participation intention at the micro level of farmers have been analyzed. For instance, the main reasons why farmers in the surveyed area are unwilling to transfer forest land

are the lack of labor force to operate the forest land, the low income from forestry and the limitation of farmer’ cognition3,4. The most significant driving force for farmers’ transfer

behavior is economic benefits, and the biggest obstacle is the lack of employment security5.Project promoters should pay attention to farmers’ psychological factors, as this will more easily

influence people’s consideration of taking action against external obstacles6. On the other hand, from the macro perspective, the hurried launch of the National Reserve Forest Project

construction, inadequate government promotion, and low enthusiasm for forest farmers to participate, have even caused resistance7. The long cultivation cycle of the National Reserve Forest

Project, and the complex project management and technical implementation process, are also essential factors hindering the participation of forest farmers8.

Although scholars have explored factors influencing forest farmers’ intention to participate in agricultural engineering projects from multiple dimensions, areas still that need further

research. First, the key aspects of different agricultural engineering projects vary, so the applicability of previous conclusions when applied to the National Reserve Forest Project needs

to be considered carefully. There is a relatively small amount of relevant literature about the National Reserve Forest Project. That not only limits our in-depth understanding of the

National Reserve Forest Project but also hinders our ability to implement precise policies based on the actual situation. Secondly, in the literature that involves the influencing factors of

forestry engineering projects, most focus on objective factors such as policy guidance, endowment capacity, and industrial organization from a single perspective, and rarely introduce

subjective cognitive factors7,8.

At present, the theory of planned behavior (TPB) has been widely applied to the study of farmer behavior. It can better predict and explain the complex process of farmer behavior9. Initially

proposed by American scholars Ajzen and Fishbein in 198010, the theory was later refined by Ajzen, I. (1985)11 with the addition of the critical variable “perceived behavioral control”.

Currently, it is widely applied to predict various behaviors and encompasses fields including psychology12,13, education14, public health, business and economics15,16, transportation,

environmental science17,18 and nursing19, as well as other scientific fields related to behavior. Many scholars use intention as a proxy for behavior when conducting research. Therefore,

this article will also focus on the intention of forest farmers to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project, that is, the tendency of forest farmers in the planned implementation

area of the National Reserve Forest Project to participate in the project in the face of numerous complex factors.

This article draws on existing research results and designs evaluation indicators to measure forest farmers’ intention and driving factors to participate in the National Reserve Forest

Project construction based on the theory of planned behavior. Combining with field research data from Guizhou Province, the province with the highest forest coverage rate in China, a binary

logistic regression model is constructed to analyze the impact mechanism of various factors on forest farmers’ intention to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project construction.

The critical constraints for forest farmers to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project construction are identified, and corresponding incentive mechanisms and policy guarantee

mechanisms are formulated according to the situation. Countermeasures and suggestions are proposed to provide a scientific basis for mobilizing the enthusiasm of forest farmers to

participate in the construction of the National Reserve Forest Project, accelerating the sustainable development of the National Reserve Forest Project, and achieving the goal of ecological,

economic, and social win–win.

The theory of planned behavior follows the assumption of bounded rationality. It explores from a psychological perspective why individuals adopt certain behaviors and how to change them

through an information-processing approach, interpreting the general decision-making process of individual behavior. Emphasis is placed on the behavioral intention as the most direct factor

influencing behavior, which must go through information processing, analysis, and contemplation before the behavior occurs. The motivation for behavior is also influenced by behavioral

attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control20. This theory has been widely applied in the study of individual decision-making behavior.

During the construction process of the National Reserve Forest Project, the participation behavior of the forestry farmers is quite complex, and their behavior is influenced by factors such

as psychological cognition, resource endowment, risk preference, and objective environment. Awareness of participation, as an important component of psychological cognition, can stimulate

farmers’ motivation participate. Understanding the psychological cognition of forestry farmers towards participating in the National Reserve Forest Project and the policy environment for

their participation is the primary step to explain and predict their participation behavior. According to the analysis framework of planned behavior theory, forest farmers’ cognition towards

participation in the National Reserve Forest Project can be manifested in three aspects: behavioral attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavior control. Forest farmers’ cognitive

level directly affects their decision on project participation. For rational economic men, participation intention is a rational choice based on maximizing economic benefit21,22. When forest

farmers are faced with various options, they will also choose the target plan to maximize their interests after weighing. Based on the above understanding and analysis, this study proposes

the following model hypotheses, see Fig. 1:

Model Hypotheses.

Behavioral attitudes represent the degree of recognition and overall evaluation of forest farmers’ participation in the National Reserve Forest Project. This evaluation directly affects the

willingness of forest farmers to participate. Generally speaking, the more positive the behavioral attitude, the stronger the willingness of forest farmers to choose their behavior23,24.

According to the theory of planned behavior10, the two factors that determine behavioral attitudes are: one is the evaluation of the outcome, which is the individual’s evaluation of the

“good” or “bad” of adopting a specific behavior; the other is the belief in behavior, which is the individual’s confidence or belief in whether a specific outcome or behavior can be

achieved. Understanding individuals’ beliefs about behavior and outcome evaluations is essential for predicting and explaining their behavioral intentions and actions.

The outcome of an evaluation can be influenced by factors such as individual values, needs, expectations, and so on. Studies have indicated that if the outcome of farmers participating in

the sale of land management rights can increase household income and improve living conditions, farmers will adopt a positive attitude; otherwise, they will hold a negative attitude25. The

willingness and decision-making factors of Irish farmers to participate in Agri-environmental schemes are explored and community development is also an important influencing factor in

addition to economic incentives27. Therefore, forest farmers’ evaluation of the results of the National Reserve Forest Project may focus on whether their family’s economic benefits have

improved25,26 and whether the future development of their village is beneficial27.

In terms of belief in behavior, each outcome evaluation is inevitably related to a belief in behavior11. After farmers transfer their land, they are worried that the transferee may be unable

to pay the rent on time due to poor management or performance. Farmers are worried that land use may change after it is transferred28. If the contract is rough, it will trigger speculation

and affect farmers’ interests29. Based on existing research results, belief in behavior may focus on whether forest farmers can obtain job security after participating in the National

Reserve Forest Project and transferring forest land to maintain their primary livelihood, whether the function of forest land has changed, and whether the contract can be guaranteed. From

the perspective of benefit perception, the willingness of forest farmers to participate in state-owned forest projects is based on the rational choice of maximizing their economic interests

based on the assumption of rational economic man21,30. When individuals pursue their economic interests and gain more wealth and resources, they can enjoy a higher quality of life and more

material enjoyment, which can bring a certain degree of satisfaction and happiness. At the same time, it can also enhance their self-esteem and self-confidence, making them feel more

accomplished and satisfied. Based on the above analysis, it can be inferred that the joint effect of outcome evaluation and belief in behavior on forest farmers’ willingness to participate

in the National Reserve Forest Project may depend on their perceived benefits.

Based on this, this paper hypothesized H1: forest farmers’ behavioral attitude significantly correlates with the participation intention in the National Reserve Forest Project.

norms and forest farmers’ intention to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project

Subjective norms refer to the external influences and pressures forest farmers feel when making project participation decisions. This pressure may come from the expectations of others,

social norms, moral standards, and other factors that influence individual behavior. Subjective norms are closely related to behavioral intentions. Suppose believe that others expect them to

take a particular action. In that case, this perception will affect their willingness to act because they hope to meet the expectations of others and gain social recognition. Therefore,

subjective norms play an important role in predicting an individual’s willingness to adopt a particular behavior31.

According to the theory of planned behavior, subjective norms are influenced by: normative beliefs and motivation to comply10. Normative beliefs refer to an individual’s expectations of

whether significant others or groups believe they should perform a specific behavior. Motivation to comply refers to the probability that an individual will comply with the expectations of

essential others or groups. Regarding normative beliefs, government support and support from family and friends have a significant positive impact on the willingness of fishermen to

participate in professional cooperative organizations32. Based on this, it can be inferred that the normative requirements of influential individuals, organizations, or the government other

than family and friends33, that is, their degree of support for forest farmers’ participation in the National Reserve Forest Project, are important factors affecting their willingness to

participate in decision-making. Therefore, normative beliefs may focus on evaluating the project by villagers who have already participated, support from family members, and local government

for the project, among other aspects. As for the motivation to comply, subjective norms can only be realized by the joint action of normative beliefs and motivation to comply when analyzing

the influencing factors of citizens’ charitable donations in Liaoning Province34. The motivation to comply may focus on the degree of forest farmers’ decision-making authority when

participating in the National Reserve Forest Project. Based on the above analysis, it can be inferred that forest farmers who feel external solid support and are motivated to comply will be

more willing to participate.

Therefore, this paper hypothesized H2: subjective norms of the external environment have a significant positive correlation with forest farmers’ participation intention in the National

Reserve Forest Project.

Behavioral control refers to an individual’s ability to control and manage behavior. This control includes two aspects: the degree of behavior control, which means that a person can

independently control their own behavior, follow their own wishes and goals, and not be influenced by external interference. This control can be achieved by improving self-awareness and

self-regulation ability; the second aspect is the level of confidence that a person believes they can complete a task or achieve a goal. Regarding the degree of behavior control, the factors

affecting the behavior control level of farmers include two dimensions: the internal resources endowment of the farmers themselves and the external environmental endowment35. Therefore, the

degree of behavior control may focus on the conditions that forest farmers possess, whether the information channels in their villages are unimpeded, and whether government propaganda is in

place. Regarding confidence level, whether forest community residents have confidence in accepting foreseeable risks is an important factor affecting their participation in community forest

management programs36. Based on the theory of risk preference, an individual’s risk tolerance and attitude are considered two important factors that influence their decision-making

behavior37. Higher risk tolerance and more open risk attitudes are generally associated with higher levels of risk preference. Therefore, individuals with these characteristics may be more

willing to take risks and try new things after considering the balance between risk and return, leading to a stronger willingness to participate in unknown projects38.

Therefore, the confidence level may focus on whether forest farmers can accept the risks brought about by participating in the National Reserve Forest Project and their confidence in

handling matters related to participation in the National Reserve Forest Project. Based on the above analysis, it can be inferred that the more information and resources forest farmers

perceive they possess, the smaller the expected resistance, the greater the perception of behavioral control, and the higher the enthusiasm for participating in project construction.

Changing one’s perception to reduce or avoid risks is an effective risk management method.

Therefore, this paper hypothesized H3: Perceived behavior control has a significant positive correlation with forest farmers’ intention to participate in the National Reserve Forest

Project.

Binary logistic regression is often chosen because it is a simple and efficient method for modeling the relationship between a binary outcome and one or more predictor variables, and it can

be easily implemented using readily available software packages. While more complex techniques like path analysis and SEM can be useful in some situations, they are often more difficult to

implement and interpret, and require larger sample sizes to obtain reliable results.

There are two outcomes for the willingness of forest farmers to participate: willing to participate and unwilling to participate, resulting in a binary discrete variable. Therefore, this

study chooses the binary logistic model as the regression model to analyze the factors affecting the willingness to participate22,39,40. In the binary logistic regression model, let y be a

binary discrete dependent variable with values of 1 or 0 (1 indicates that the forest farmer is willing to participate, and 0 indicates that the forest farmer is not willing to participate);

BA, SN, and PC represent behavioral attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control, respectively. They are independent variables related to the dependent variable y, and the

probability P(y = 1/x) of the dependent variable Y, taking the value 1, is the object of the model to be studied. The binary logistic regression model is represented as:

{P/\left( {1 - P} \right)} \right] = \delta + \Sigma^{5}_{i = 1} \alpha_{i} BA_{i} + \Sigma^{5}_{i = 1} \beta_{i} SN_{i} + \Sigma^{5}_{i = 1} \theta_{i} PC_{i} + \varepsilon$$

In the above equation, P represents the probability that forest farmers are willing to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project; δrepresents the intercept parameter of the linear

model, which is a constant term; αi, βi, θi represent the regression coefficients; BAi, SNi, and PCi represent explanatory variables that affect the behavior of forest farmers; ε represents

the random disturbance term.

This study scale was developed in strict accordance with the requirements and procedures of the General Paradigm Manual prepared by Jllian J Francisl41 for planned behavior theory

questionnaire entries, including direct measurements and indirect measurements based on semi-structured interview results. This study, which involves human participants, was reviewed and

approved by the Ethics Committee of the College of Economics, Guizhou University of Finance and Economics (Approval Number: 2022.024324). The participants provided their written informed

consent to participate in this study. All methods were performed in accordance with the relevant guidelines and regulations by including a statement in the methods section to this effect.

Behavior-specific questionnaires developed according to the manual can be used to investigate variables such as attitudes and beliefs behind the intended behavior of project participation.

Based on existing research literature and field investigation, the following variables are designed in this study (see Table 1):

Likert5 scale was adopted in this study, in which “totally disagree” was scored 1, “disagree” was scored 2, “general” was scored 3, “agree” was scored 4, and “completely agree” was scored 5.

The intention behind forest farmers’ participation behavior was investigated. The participation was evaluated on a binomial choice, with 0 indicating ‘unwilling to participate’ and 1

indicating ‘willing to participate’.

The data used in this paper are derived from the investigation on the forest farmers’ intention to participate in the construction of the National Reserve Forest Project and its driving

factors, which was carried out from February 2022 to April 2022 in the four cities and states that took the lead in the construction of the National Reserve Forest Project in Guizhou

Province. In order to guarantee the data’s representativity, 3–4 villages in each city and state were selected by a combination of stratified sampling and random sampling, and the use of the

questionnaire was explained to the forest farmers using household survey and one-to-one questionnaire survey to avoid the occurrence of untrue data. 268 questionnaires were sent out, and

262 valid questionnaires were collected, accounting for 97.70% of the total.

76% of the forest farmers in the sample were male, and only 24% were female. The age was mainly 40–60, among which the forest farmers aged 50–60 accounted for the most significant proportion

(35.9%). Villagers with ordinary status accounted for 93.1%. Householders accounted for the most significant proportion (66.8%) of the respondents. Most respondents’ education level was

below high school or technical secondary school, among which primary school and below accounted for the highest proportion (50.8%). Most respondents were willing to participate in

constructing the National Reserve Forest Project, accounting for 84.4%. Overall, the respondents agree with the phenomenon of left-behind older adults, children, older people, and less

educated people in rural areas. The details are shown in Table 2.

Excel software was used to input the data, and descriptive statistical analysis of relevant scales was conducted. IBM SPSS Statistics 25 software was used to test the data’s reliability and

validity. SPSSS software was used to conduct binary logistic regression tests on the questionnaire data.

In order to ensure the reliability and consistency of the research results, Cronbach’s Alpha reliability coefficient was used herein for the reliability test, and IBM SPSS Statistics 25

software was used for calculation. The overall standardized reliability coefficient of behavioral attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavior control are more significant than 0.7,

smaller than the corresponding standardized reliability coefficient, and greater than 0.5 after deleting items. Therefore, the reliability is relatively good, indicating that the measurement

items meet the research requirements.

IBM SPSS Statistics 25 software was used for exploratory factor analysis and questionnaire validity analysis, with results shown in Table 3.

The KMO measurement coefficient was 0.902, and the KMO measurement coefficient was between 0 and 1. The closer the coefficient was to 1, the better the questionnaire effect was. According to

the sphericity test, the significance was close to 0, and the approximate Chi-square value was high at 2471.188, so the questionnaire had good validity.

IBMSPSSStatistics25 software was used to conduct a binary logistic regression analysis on the driving factors affecting forest farmers’ intention to participate in the National Reserve

Forest Project. Variables were incorporated into the model by the (forward) conditional method. Based on the significance test at 95% confidence level, the regression results are shown in

Table 4.

Among the variables of the behavioral attitude dimension, BA1 and BA4 are significant at the 99% confidence level, indicating that they are the two most important factors affecting forest

farmers’ participation in the National Reserve Forest Project28,30. A significant positive correlation is shown, which partially validates the research hypothesis H1. BA2 is not included in

the model, which may be related to the high number of local villagers going out for work, low correlation with collective economic interests, and lack of sense of belonging and

responsibility towards the village collective42,43. BA3 is not included in the model, which may be related to improving the local social security level or forest farmers’ ability to make a

living with their children to provide retirement financing44. BA5’s failure to enter the model may be related to managing forest land real estate rights. The survey shows 72% of forest

farmers have completed forest land property certificate transactions (The government determines the right to use and operate forest land) in Guizhou Province. These forest farmers believe

that if they have the property proper certificate, there is no risk of being unable to reclaim the forest land29.

Among the variables in the dimension of subjective norms, SN1 and SN2 are significant at the 99% confidence level, while SN3 and SN5 are significant at the 95% confidence level, which

verifies the research hypothesis H232,34. First, 66.8% of the respondents were householders, and their spouses and children generally trust the decisions of householders. Second, most

respondents get along well with their relatives and friends, who communicate with each other more than three times a week. The decision of relatives and friends will affect the forest

farmers’ willingness to participate. Third, the attitude of the government, the village collective and local villagers who have participated in the project also affect the forest farmers’

willingness to participate. This situation is because the village collective has a high prestige, and its attitude tends to play a solid leading role among forest farmers.

behavior control and participation intention

Among the variables in the dimension of perceived behavioral control, PC1 and PC3were significant at the 99 and 95% confidence levels, respectively, partially verifying the research

hypothesis H335,36. First, most surveyed sites were villages (communities) with fast construction progress in the National Reserve Forest Project, so most forest farmers have the conditions

to participate. More qualified forest farmers are more willing to participate. Second, the foreseeable risks of participating in the National Reserve Forest Project are directly related to

forest farmers’ interests. Forest farmers with a remarkable ability to handle predictable risks are more willing to participate, which is also consistent with the rational broker hypothesis.

Third, PC2, PC4, and PC4 are not included in the model. The investigation shows that, when governments at all levels communicate with the particular construction class of the National

Reserve Forest Project, the village collective, and the forest farmers, due to the limitation of knowledge reserve and information asymmetry, the forest farmers do not access much

information related to the construction of the National Reserve Forest Project. Moreover, the village collective needs to explain the details in communication with forest farmers, resulting

in insufficient information mastery by the forest farmers, which hinders the improvement of forest farmers’ risk perception ability.

The construction of the National Reserve Forest Project in Guizhou Province is currently in the stage of forest land transfer, forest collection, storage, and the under-planting of economic

crops. Forest farmers’ participation is the basis for the smooth progress of the related work at this stage. Based on the planned behavior theory, this paper constructed a binary logistic

model regarding forest farmers’ intention to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project and its driving factors. It empirically tested with the survey data of Guizhou Province in

2022. The following conclusions are drawn:

Firstly, forest farmers have abstract cognition, but according to the planned behavior theory, it can be manifested from three aspects: behavioral attitude, subjective norms and perceived

behavior control. Cognition determines the forest farmers’ intention, which affects the behavior of participating in the National Reserve Forest Project. The model based on the planned

behavior theory can well explain and predict forest farmers’ intended behavior of participating in the National Reserve Forest Project.

Secondly, within the surveyed area, it was found that 84.4% of forest farmers expressed their willingness to participate in the construction of the National Reserve Forest Project,

indicating that the government’s vigorous promotion has had a relatively ideal effect, but further improvement is still needed. Secondly, within the surveyed area, it was found that 84.4% of

forest farmers expressed their willingness to participate in the construction of the National Reserve Forest Project, indicating that the government’s vigorous promotion has had a

relatively ideal effect, but further improvement is still needed. The impact of participating in this project on household economic benefits, changes in the use of forest land, the degree of

support from local governments, village collectives, participating villagers, family members, the ability to meet project participation conditions, and acceptance of foreseeable risks are

all prominent driving factors in the decision-making behavior of forest farmers.

Thirdly, economic rationality is still an essential factor affecting the willingness of forest farmers to participate, which also confirms the viewpoint in related literature that farmers

are rational economic agents. However, economic rationality is not the only factor determining whether forest farmers participate in the project. Furthermore, in this study, forest farmers’

concerns about changes in forest land use due to participation in the National Reserve Forest Project and their potential impact on ecological benefits are also significant influencing

factors. The ecological brokerage theory can explain this result. As forest farmers’ income and living standards improve, and as the government regulates production externalities, forest

farmers will gradually pay more attention to ecological benefits, rather than just economic benefits.

Based on the results of the above analysis, some recommendations have been put forward.

First, the forest land transfer subsidy should be increased, and the rural social security system should be perfected. The economic benefit of forest farmers participating in the National

Reserve Forest Project and the worry about the change of forest land use will influence forest farmers’ participation in the National Reserve Forest Project. Currently, most rural young

people work in the city to maintain family living expenses. In order to improve the forest farmers’ enthusiasm for participating in the transfer of forest land in the National Reserve Forest

Project, it is necessary to increase the subsidy on forest land transfer and increase forest farmers’ economic benefits. Some forest farmers worry that the use of forest land will be

changed after the transfer, and the original function cannot be restored. Therefore, the rural pension security system should be improved to relieve forest farmers’ worries.

Second, strengthen skill training, and improve forest farmers’ quality. This study showed that partners’ happiness in participation or the influence of superiors significantly impacted the

forest farmers’ participation in the National Reserve Forest Project. The government should strengthen the skills training in the National Reserve Forest Project and the production skills

training among forest farmers, which will help improve the risk perception ability of forest farmers and let them make a more rational choice of whether to participate in the National

Reserve Forest Project.

Third, strengthen the publicity, and improve forest farmers’ cognition level. This study showed that the qualification to participate in the National Reserve Forest Project and the ability

to deal with the foreseeable risks significantly impact forest farmers’ participation in the National Reserve Forest Project. Forest farmers have limited access to information related to the

National Reserve Forest Project. The problem to be solved is to give full play to the role of village collective organizations, effectively publicize the National Reserve Forest Project

policy, and let forest farmers change their thinking.

The datasets used and/or analysed during the current study available from the corresponding author Youzhi Wang on reasonable request via e-mail [email protected].

References Yang, C. Problems and countermeasures in the construction of National Reserve Forests. Farmers Consult. 06, 95 (2020).

CAS  MATH  Google Scholar 

Zhang, D. & Xia, K. Analysis of problems and countermeasures in the construction of national reserve forests. Bus. Econ. 3(3), 132–133 (2020).

MathSciNet  MATH  Google Scholar 

Yuan, Q., Lu, Y. & Gao, L. Analysis of influencing factors on farmers’ willingness to transfer forest tenure based on the theory of planned behavior. Guangdong Agric. Sci. 02, 186–192

(2017).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Yang, H. Research on factors influencing land transfer willingness in the context of rural revitalization and three rights separation: Taking Bozhou City of Anhui Province as an example. J.

Huaihai Inst. Technol. Soc. Sci. Ed. 17(5), 5 (2019).

Google Scholar 

Shen, M. The Influence of Farmers’ Cognition on Agricultural Land Transfer Intention Based on DTPB Theory (Huazhong Agricultural University, 2020).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Faisal, M., Xia, C., Akhtar, S., Raza, M. H. & Khan, M. Modeling smallholder livestock herders’ intentions to adopt climate smart practices: an extended theory of planned behavior. Environ.

Sci. Poll. Res. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-09652-w (2020).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Yu, Y. Difficulties and countermeasures in the construction of national reserve forests in Suiyang County: Suggestions. Rural Econ. Technol. 32(14), 3 (2021).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Wen, Z. Analysis on the Construction of National Reserve Forests. Shaanxi Forestry Science and Technology (2020).

Michels, M., Bonke, V. & Musshoff, O. Adoption of herbicide resistance tests in German arable farming: Insights from the theory of planned behaviour. Aust. J. Agric. Resour. Econ.

https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8489.12583 (2024).

Article  Google Scholar 

Ajzen, I. & Fishbein, M. Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social Behavior (Prentice Hall, 1980).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Ajzen, I. From intentions to actions: A theory of planned behavior. In Action Control: From Cognition to Behavior (eds Kuhl, J. & Beckmann, J.) (Springer, 1985).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Armitage, C. J. & Christian, J. From attitudes to behaviour: basic and applied research on the theory of planned behaviour. Curr. Psychol. 22(3), 187–195 (2003).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Webb, T. L. & Sheeran, P. Does changing behavioral intentions engender behavior change? A meta-analysis of the experimental evidence. Psychol. Bull. 132(2), 249–268 (2006).

Article  PubMed  MATH  Google Scholar 

Crawley, F. E. & Iii, F. Intentions of science teachers to use investigative teaching methods: a test of the theory of planned behavior. J. Res. Sci. Teach. 27(7), 685–697 (2010).

Article  Google Scholar 

Mceachan, R., Conner, M., Taylor, N. J. & Lawton, R. J. Prospective prediction of health-related behaviours with the theory of planned behaviour: a meta-analysis. Health Psychol. Rev. 5(2),

97–144 (2011).

Article  Google Scholar 

Cooke, R., Dahdah, M., Norman, P. & French, D. P. How well does the theory of planned behaviour predict alcohol consumption? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Health Psychol. Rev.

10(2), 1–53 (2014).

Google Scholar 

Gholamrezai, S., Aliabadi, V. & Ataei, P. Understanding the pro-environmental behavior among green poultry farmers: application of behavioral theories. Environ. Dev. Sustain.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-021-01331-1 (2021).

Article  Google Scholar 

Karimi, H. & Ataei, P. Farmers’ cultural biases and adaptation behavior towards drought: A case in Sistan Plain. J. Agric. Sci. Technol. 24(4), 793–809 (2022).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Stolte, E., Hopman-Rock, M., Aartsen, M. J., Tilburg, T. G. V. & Chorus, A. The theory of planned behavior and physical activity change: outcomes of the aging well and healthily intervention

program for older adults. J. Aging Phys. Act. 25(3), 1–25 (2017).

Google Scholar 

Ajzen, I. The theory of planned behavior. Organ. Behav. Hum. Decis. Process. 50(2), 179–211 (1991).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Teng, P., Song, G., Huang, S., Tao, J. & Xu, S. Research on the influencing factors of agricultural land transfer intention from the perspective of farmers’ cognition: A case study of Jing

Shan County, Hubei Province. Chin. Agric. Resour. Reg. Plann. 38(01), 89–95 (2017).

Google Scholar 

Tsonkova, P., Mirck, J., BöHm, C. & Fütz, B. Addressing farmer-perceptions and legal constraints to promote agroforestry in Germany. Agrofor. Syst. 92(4), 1091–1103 (2018).

Article  Google Scholar 

Zafar, A. U., Qiu, J. & Shahzad, M. Do digital celebrities’ relationships and social climate matter? Impulse buying in f-commerce. Internet Res. Electron. Network. Appl. Polic. 30(6),

1731–1762 (2020).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Karampournioti, E. & Wiedmann, K. P. Storytelling in online shops: the impacts on explicit and implicit user experience, brand perceptions and behavioral intention. Internet Res. 32(7),

228–259 (2022).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Xu, X. & Ma, Y. Study on farmers’ intention and behavior of land shareholding based on the theory of planned behavior. Econ. Forum 6, 9 (2021).

MATH  Google Scholar 

He, X., Jiang, T., Guo, L. & Gan, L. Development of China’s agricultural land transfer market and study on farmers’ land transfer behavior: Based on a survey of farmers in 29 provinces from

2013 to 2015. Manag. World 6(11), 79–89 (2016).

Google Scholar 

Mcgurk, E., Hynes, S. & Thorne, F. Participation in agri-environmental schemes: a contingent valuation study of farmers in Ireland. J. Environ. Manag. 262, 110243 (2020).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Lü, J., & Jia, W. Research on the Prevention Mechanism of Rural Land Transfer Default Risk under the “Three Rights Separation” System. Theory and Reform, 6 (8) (2017).

Hart, O. & Moore, J. Incomplete contracts and renegotiations. Econometrica 56(4), 755–785 (1988).

Article  MathSciNet  MATH  Google Scholar 

Jafari-Sadeghi, V., Mahdiraji, H. A., Busso, D. & Yahiaoui, D. Towards agility in international high-tech smes: exploring key drivers and main outcomes of dynamic capabilities. Technol.

Forecast. Soc. Chang. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121272 (2022).

Article  Google Scholar 

Cialdini, R. B., Kallgren, C. A. & Reno, R. R. A focus theory of normative conduct: A theoretical refinement and reevaluation of the role of norms in human behavior. Adv. Exp. Soc. Psychol.

24(1), 201–234 (1991).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Zhang, G., Zhang, L., Qiu, X. & Zhu, W. The mechanism of fishermen’s participation in professional cooperative organizations based on planned behavior theory. Issues Agric. Econ. 8, 8

(2015).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Wang, P., Guo, Q. & Wang, T. A study on farmers’ cognition and land transfer based on the theory of planned behavior. Hubei Agric. Sci. 61(04), 164–170 (2022).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Zhang, J., Liu, T. & Liu, W. Analysis of factors affecting citizens’ charitable donation behavior based on planned behavior theory: A case study of Liaoning Province. Soft Sci. 25(8), 7

(2011).

CAS  MATH  Google Scholar 

Zhang, F. & Hu, J. Analysis of the mechanism of non-polluting planting behavior of fruit farmers based on planned behavior theory: A survey of apple growers in 16 cities and countries in

Shandong Province. Issues Agric. Econ. 7, 8 (2013).

CAS  Google Scholar 

Apipoonyanon, C. et al. Local participation in community forest management using theory of planned behaviour: evidence from Udon Thani province, Thailand. Eur. J. Dev. Res. 2, 1–27 (2019).

Google Scholar 

Tversky, K. A. Prospect theory:an analysis of decision under risk. Econometrica 47(2), 263–291 (1979).

Article  MathSciNet  MATH  Google Scholar 

Dohmen, T. et al. Individual risk attitude-s: measurement, determinants, and behavioral consequences. J. Eur. Econ. Assoc. 9(3), 522–550 (2011).

Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

Wang, H., Li, C. & Zhang, S. A comparative study on farmers’ willingness to transfer in and out of cultivated land based on the theory of planned behavior. Chin. J. Agric. Resour. Reg.

Plann. 40(09), 169–175 (2019).

CAS  MATH  Google Scholar 

Zeng, Q. Research on the influencing factors of residents’ participation in commercial pension insurance from the perspective of planned behavior theory. J. Wuhan Bus. Coll. 36(4), 59–64

(2022).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Francis,J.J.,Eccles,M.P.,Johnston,M.,Walker,A.,&Foy,R..Constructing questionnaires based on the theory of planned behaviour:a manual for health services researchers. Centre for Health

Services Research University of Newcastle upon Tyne (2004).

Zhao, L. How does the development of new rural collective economy promote common prosperity: A dual-case study from the perspective of sustainable development. Chin. Rural Econ. 08, 60–83

(2023).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Kemp, R., Parto, S. & Gibson, R. B. Governance for sustainable development: Moving from theory to practice. Int. J. Sustain. Dev. 8, 12–30 (2005).

Article  Google Scholar 

Na, J. Does Public Pension Affect Inter-generational Support in Rural China?. Popul. Res. 40(4), 88–102 (2016).

MATH  Google Scholar 

Download references

“Study on tracking and evaluation of the implementation effect of ecological poverty alleviation in Guizhou” Philosophy and social sciences research program of Guizhou Province (19GZYB70).

Author informationAuthors and Affiliations College of Economics, Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, Guiyang, 550025, Guizhou, China

Yang Song & Gaocheng Hu

College of Public Management, Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, Guiyang, 550025, Guizhou, China

Youzhi Wang

AuthorsYang SongView author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar

Youzhi WangView author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar

Gaocheng HuView author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar

Yang Song: Conceptualization, methodology, software, validation, formal analysis, investigation, resources, data curation, writing—original draft preparation Youzhi Wang: methodology,

software, validation,writing—review and editing, visualization, supervision, project administration, funding acquisition Gaocheng Hu: software, validation, formal analysis, investigation.

Corresponding author Correspondence to Youzhi Wang.

The authors declare no competing interests.

The studies involving human participants were reviewed and approved by College of Economics, Guizhou University of Finance and Economics Ethics Committee (Approval Number: 2022.024324). The

participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, which permits any non-commercial use, sharing, distribution

and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if you

modified the licensed material. You do not have permission under this licence to share adapted material derived from this article or parts of it. The images or other third party material in

this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative

Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a

copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

Reprints and permissions

About this articleCite this article Song, Y., Wang, Y. & Hu, G. The analysis on forest farmers’ intention to participate in construction of the National Reserve Forest Project and its

driving factors. Sci Rep 15, 182 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-84777-3

Download citation

Received: 12 April 2024

Accepted: 26 December 2024

Published: 02 January 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-84777-3

Share this article Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Get shareable link Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Copy to clipboard Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

KeywordsNational Reserve Forest ProjectPlanned behavior theoryParticipation intentionDriving factor