This article presents an introduction to the Health Belief Model (HBM). The HBM states that the perception of a personal health behavior threat is influenced by at least three factors: general health values, interest and concern about health; specific beliefs about vulnerability to a particular health threat; and beliefs about the consequences of the health problem. Once an individual perceives a threat to his health and is simultaneously cued to action, if his perceived benefits outweighs his perceived costs, then the individual is most likely to undertake the recommended preventive health action. Key words: health promotion, health belief model, perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, perceived barriers, cues to action, self-efficacy. Content available only in Romanian.

Health Belief Model

The State of Food and Agriculture

Communication for rural innovation: rethinking agricultural extension

BackgroundMany Trichoderma species are applied as biofungicides and biofertilizers to agricultural soils to enhance crop growth. These filamentous fungi have the ability to reduce plant diseases and promote plant growth and productivity through overlapping modes of action including induced systemic resistance, antibiosis, enhanced nutrient efficiency, and myco-parasitism. Trichoderma species are prolific producers of many small metabolites with antifungal, antibacterial, and anticancer properties. Volatile metabolites of Trichoderma also have the ability to induce resistance to plant pathogens leading to improved plant health. In this study, Arabidopsis plants were exposed to mixtures of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by growing cultures of Trichoderma from 20 strains, representing 11 different Trichoderma species.ResultsWe identified nine Trichoderma strains that produced plant growth promoting VOCs. Exposure to mixtures of VOCs emitted by these strains increased plant biomass (37.1–41.6 %) and chlorophyll content (82.5–89.3 %). Trichoderma volatile-mediated changes in plant growth were strain- and species-specific. VOCs emitted by T. pseudokoningii (CBS 130756) were associated with the greatest Arabidopsis growth promotion. One strain, T. atroviride (CBS 01-209), in our screen decreased growth (50.5 %) and chlorophyll production (13.1 %). Similarly, tomatoes exposed to VOCs from T. viride (BBA 70239) showed a significant increase in plant biomass (>99 %), larger plant size, and significant development of lateral roots. We also observed that the tomato plant growths were dependent on the duration of the volatile exposure. A GC–MS analysis of VOCs from Trichoderma strains identified more than 141 unique compounds including several unknown sesquiterpenes, diterpenes, and tetraterpenes.ConclusionsPlants grown in the presence of fungal VOCs emitted by different species and strains of Trichoderma exhibited a range of effects. This study demonstrates that the blend of volatiles produced by actively growing fungi and volatile exposure time in plant development both influence the outcome of volatile-mediated interactions. Only some of our growth promoting strains produced microbial VOCs known to enhance plant growth. Compounds such as 6-pentyl-2H-pyran-2-one were not common to all promoting strains. We found that biostimulatory strains tended to have a larger number of complex terpenes which may explain the variation in growth induced by different Trichoderma strains.

Volatile organic compounds emitted by iTrichoderma species mediate plant growth

Influencing factors of farmers' cognition on agricultural mulch film pollution in rural China

Agricultural knowledge and innovation system (AKIS) has a strong potential to enhance economic performance of farming and contribute to agricultural sustainability, as it may increase synergies and complementarity among actors. This paper is aimed to develop a proposed framework to strengthen AKIS in the study area based on the results of this study. This paper explores perception and views about strengthening AKIS in Dakhalia governorate of Egypt by applying a multi-actor approach. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through face-to-face interviews and focus group discussion. This paper focuses on three structural dimensions, namely actors, interactions, and technologies, to describe the nature of innovation processes within AKIS. Results indicate that legal and regulatory frameworks, lack of infrastructure, and weak the role of intermediary organizations are the main barriers that AKIS faces. Linkages of contracting and public–private partnerships were viewed as main interactions required to strengthen AKIS. The analysis also explores the availability of innovation requirements at each actor, as well as the distributive technologies, that should be encouraged to build the capacity the agricultural sector. A proposed framework is developed based on the results of this study and the characteristics of the AKIS in the study area. This framework could be used for stimulating innovation and enhancing coordination between actors.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/12/5131/pdf

Shifting from Fragmentation to Integration: A Proposed Framework for Strengthening Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System in Egypt

Factors influencing farmers' satisfaction with the quality of agricultural extension services

Farmers’ awareness of agri-environmental legislation in Saudi Arabia

The red palm weevil (RPW) (Rhynchophorus ferruginous) is one of the most serious pest insects threatening the sustainability of the date palm sector (Phoenix dactylifera L.). Nevertheless, a gap exists in the body of knowledge regarding patterns in farmers’ adoption of integrated pest management (IPM) for RPW control and how their knowledge of RPW symptomology influences IPM adoption. Data were collected using structured questionnaires from 183 palm growers in Al-Ahsa Governorate, Saudi Arabia. The results indicate that most farmers had insufficient knowledge to visually diagnose RPW symptoms and damage. Farmers moderately adopted preventive measures recommended for protection from RPW infestation. Only 13.11% of the farmers exhibited a high rate of adoption of pest management practices for RPW control and eradication. The findings revealed a strong positive association (0.8, p < 0.01) between the knowledge level regarding symptoms and IPM adoption level, whereby the respondents with more knowledge of RPW symptoms showed a higher level of adoption in all IPM categories. This study contributes to the development of our understanding of the social behaviors and risks associated with RPW. This might enhance the quality of awareness campaigns and extension programs and assist in developing a visual inspection protocol for RPW infestation for farmers.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/22/9647/pdf

Sustainable Management of the Red Palm Weevil: The Nexus between Farmers’ Adoption of Integrated Pest Management and Their Knowledge of Symptoms

Climate change constitutes a major threat to agricultural production, food security, and natural resource management. Saudi Arabia is particularly susceptible to increasing temperatures and extreme climatic events, such as arid weather and drought. The purpose of this study is to assess farmers’ beliefs and concerns as regards climate change. Extensive interviews were conducted with 164 farmers in the Jazan region. Results revealed that 89.6% of the farmers believed that climate change is due to human activities and 93.3% believed that it is because of natural change. Seventy-five percent of the farmers were concerned about insects and 73% about the prevalence of weeds on their farms. Findings of cluster analysis revealed that farmers who are more likely to believe in climate change are more in agreement with the role of extension services in capacity building. Farmers’ beliefs about climate change were significantly influenced by membership of agricultural cooperatives, access to loans, use of extension services, age, farm size, and level of soil fertility. Access to loans was the only significant factor to explain the differences in farmers’ concerns. These results suggest the need for capacity-building activities targeted at improving farmers’ adaptability to manage climate variability.

/pdf/farmers-beliefs-and-concerns-about-climate-change-an-5f3g696yci.pdf

Bader Alhafi Alotaibi

Papers

Shifting from Fragmentation to Integration: A Proposed Framework for Strengthening Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System in Egypt

Factors influencing farmers' satisfaction with the quality of agricultural extension services

Farmers’ awareness of agri-environmental legislation in Saudi Arabia

Sustainable Management of the Red Palm Weevil: The Nexus between Farmers’ Adoption of Integrated Pest Management and Their Knowledge of Symptoms

Farmers’ Beliefs and Concerns about Climate Change: An Assessment from Southern Saudi Arabia