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Tree planting by smallholder farers in Malawi: Using the theory of planned behaviour to examine the relationship between attitudes and behaviour
Author
Seline S. Meijer, Delia Catacutan, Gudeta W. Sileshi and Maarten Nieuwenhuis
Year
2015
Journal Title
Journal of Environmental Psychology
Institution
Elsevier Ltd
Volume
43
Pages
1-12
Call Number
JA0622-15
Keywords
Adoption, Agroforestry, Gender, Perceived behavioural control, Subjective norm, Theory of planned behaviour (TPB)
Abstract:
This study examined farmers' attitudes towards tree planting on farms in Malawi, using the theory of planned behaviour as a conceptual framework. Questionnaires containing a scale that measures attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control in relation to tree planting were administered to 200 farmers in Chiradzulu and Mzimba districts in Malawi. Farmers who reported planting trees in the last five years had more positive attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control compared
to farmers who have not planted trees. A hierarchical logistic regression analysis showed that membership of a farmer group and attitudes had a significant positive influence on reported behaviour. Nevertheless, many farmers considered household needs such as buying food and agricultural inputs, as well as children's education, as more urgent than investing their scarce resources in tree planting, suggesting that poverty is a barrier to tree planting.
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