A Study of the Influential Factors of the Farmer''s Pesticide Use Behavior: An Illustration of Grape Farmers in Cho-Lan and Tung-Shih Township

Abstract

This study, based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), Cognition Learning Theory and Social Control Theory, is to investigate the factors affecting the pesticide use behavior of the grape farmers. A total of 116 respondents from Cho-Lan Town and Tung-Shih Township were acquired. The following finding were derived : 1. The training of pesticide application for farmer is neither sufficient nor prevalent. In general, farmers are still normalizing their behaviors in a practical manner in terms of legal commitment. Governmental laws and regulations are ignored relatively in most aspects. It shows the lack of recognition and obedience of the farmers toward government's regulations. Interviewed farmers consult information knowledge of pesticide application from many channels, among those the pesticide retailers are inquired most often. Of importance, the retailers are also one of the farmers' most trusted consultants. 2. A variety of information sources affects farmers' pesticide use behaviors and attitudes significantly. It is found that consulting retailers and peers dose not increase the time and amounts of pesticide use. On the other hand, searching information through books and extension agents dose decrease pesticide application behaviors. In addition, joing the Production Marketing Groups not only can restrict pesticide use of members to some extent, it can also promote the flow of pesticide application knowledge. 3. Referring to Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and the theoretical frame, the perceived behavior control, positive use pesticide attitude and subjective norm showed recursive causal relations in the path analyses. 4. Governmental assistance and promotion, farmers educational level, training time, crisis risk cognition, perceived behavior control and pesticide use attitude are all affecting the pesticide use frequencies intermediated by subjective norm.

本研究以計畫行為理論、認知學習理論和社會控制論為基礎，研究農民使用農藥行為的影響因素，並以卓蘭鎮和東勢鎮的葡萄果農作為研究對象，共獲得有效問卷116份，經過分析後，得到以下重要的研究結果： 一﹑受訪農民農藥使用的教育訓練份量不足且普及性也不夠，農民對農藥使用的法制責任仍然以現實層面的使用情況來規範自己的農藥使用行為，而非遵循政府的法令來使用，顯示農民對政府的農藥使用規定認知不足。農民使用農藥知識來源管道是一多元管道的利用，其中以農藥零售商管道的利用最多，也是農民最信賴的專業諮詢。 二﹑不同的農藥知識來源會對農民個體在農藥使用態度和農藥使用行為產生不同的影響，其中利用農藥零售商和其他農民的諮詢管道並不會增加農藥使用的次數和金額，而自己看書找資料、問推廣員等管道皆會減少農藥使用的次數。另外參加產銷班組織除了對班員能產生行為規範的作用，也能促進班員間的農藥知識流動，進而減少農藥使用金額和次數。 三﹑以計畫行為理論為理論架構的行為控制認知、正向農藥使用態度和主觀規範等中間變項在路徑分析上呈現相互影響情況。 四﹑政府的輔導與宣導、教育程度、教育訓練、災害風險認知、行為控制認知和農藥使用態度皆透過主觀規範因素來影響農藥使用次數。