Value Perception, Government Regulation, and Farmers’ Behavior toward Continuing to Maintain the Sloping Land Conversion Program

Chen Chen, Qiheng Zhong and Liqun Wang ()
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Chen Chen: School of Economics and Management, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
Qiheng Zhong: Shandong Guokong Capital Investment Co., Ltd., Jinan 250000, China
Liqun Wang: School of Economics and Management, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China

Land, 2024, vol. 13, issue 3, 1-18

Abstract: As a major ecological project with the largest investment scale, strongest policy support, most extensive involvement, and the highest level of public participation in the world, the Sloping Land Conversion Program (SLCP) implemented by China is important for protecting the ecological environment and achieving long-term stability. Consolidating the SLCP’s achievements is key to its sustainable operation. Based on a sample of 612 farmers in Guizhou Province, this paper discusses the impact of value perception and government regulation on farmers’ behavior in terms of their continued SLCP maintenance. The results show that (1) value perception and government regulation are important factors affecting the sustainability of farmers’ behavior of continuing to maintain the SLCP. Perceived economic value and perceived cost input, as dimensions of value perception, and policy publicity and economic incentives, as dimensions of government regulation, have important influences on farmers’ continued SLCP maintenance. (2) There are complementary effects between value perception and government regulation. Policy publicity and perceived ecological value, technical guidance and perceived economic and social value, and economic incentives and perceived economic value can have complementary effects on farmers’ continued maintenance behavior. (3) Value perception and government regulation heterogeneously impact different groups of farmers. In terms of intergenerational differences, perceived cost inputs and punitive measures significantly affect only new-generation farmers. In terms of farmer type, perceived economic value does not significantly affect nonfarmers; perceived cost input significantly affects part-time farmers engaged mainly in off-farm employment, and technical guidance and economic incentives have the greatest impact on pure farmers. In terms of tree species, perceived cost input and policy publicity significantly impact only ecological forest farmers, while technical guidance has a greater impact on economic forest farmers. The findings provide an in-depth understanding of the mechanism underlying farmers’ behavior in maintaining the SLCP and offer a reference for promoting the goals of forestry ecological policies against the background of rural revitalization and green development.

Keywords: land resources; sustainable development; logit model; payments for environmental services; Guizhou Province (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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