Does Social Capital Help to Reduce Farmland Abandonment? Evidence from Big Survey Data in Rural China

Xin Deng, Miao Zeng, Dingde Xu and Yanbin Qi
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Xin Deng: College of Economics, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
Miao Zeng: School of Economics, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
Dingde Xu: Sichuan Center for Rural Development Research, College of Management, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
Yanbin Qi: College of Economics, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China

Land, 2020, vol. 9, issue 10, 1-17

Abstract: At a time when COVID-19 is sweeping the world, farmland abandonment is obviously not conducive to solving food security problems. Since the formal institutions of local government in China have not been effective in the reduction of farmland abandonment, this study aims to explore whether informal institutions can help mitigate this problem. Based on big survey data from 8031 farmer households in 27 provinces in mainland China, this study uses an econometric model to investigate the quantitative impact of social capital on farmland abandonment, and to analyze the channels through which that impact manifests itself. The empirical results point to the following conclusions: (i) Social capital, as a key informal institution, can help reduce farmland abandonment. More specifically, after controlling for other variables, for every unit increase in social capital, the proportion of farmland abandonment can be predicted to drop by 7.17 percentage points. (ii) Both off-farm employment and farmland rent are channels for the impact of social capital on farmland abandonment. However, social capital’s effect on increasing farmland abandonment via the promotion of off-farm employment is small when compared with its effect on reducing farmland abandonment via the promotion of farmland rent. This study’s conclusions may help generate new ideas for reducing farmland abandonment. At the same time, the study may provide a sound, empirical basis for policies aimed at reducing the negative impact of COVID-19 on food security while also revitalizing rural areas.

Keywords: social capital; farmland abandonment; off-farm employment; farmland rent; rural China; big survey data (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (17)

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