Explaining farmers’ response to water crisis through theory of the norm activation model: Evidence from Iran

In the recent years, frequent droughts and excessive use of water by farmers have exposed Iran at serious risk of drought, even in most areas; consequences of dehydration are clearly visible. Therefore, the main objective of this study was investigating determinants of water conservation behavior among farmers. In this regard, an extended theory of the norm activation model (NAM) was used as theoretical framework for the research by adding the variable of environmental concern (EC). The research was carried out using questionnaire survey method and with the help of structural equation modeling (SEM). Statistical population of the study included all farmers cultivating wheat in Khuzestan Province (southwest of Iran). The research findings showed that the initial NAM accounts for 0.301% of the variance in farmers' water conservation behavior. Nine primary NAM structures including awareness of consequences (AC), awareness of need (AN), situational responsibility (SR), outcome efficacy (OE), ability (AB), denial of responsibility (DR), personal norm (PN), pride emotion (PE), and guilt emotion (GE) all had significant effects (p ≤ 0.01) on farmers' water conservation behavior. Most importantly, the developed NAM increased the model's ability to explain farmers' water conservation behavior by 16.5% through incorporating EC variables. In the present study, EC was identified as the most important factor, so policymakers can emphasize it to promote safe water use behavior in agricultural environments.