Psychological and Behavioral Predictors of Rural In‐migration
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identified the psychological and behavioral factors that have been suggested in the psychology literature and in rural studies as factors affecting people's decision to move to rural areas.
Abstract: In recent times, many studies have been conducted to understand those who migrate to rural areas. However, few have investigated the psychological and behavioral factors that affect people's decisions to migrate to rural areas. This study identifies the psychological and behavioral factors that have been suggested in the psychology literature and in rural studies as factors affecting people's decision to move to rural areas. The study is unique in that it categorizes the psychological states during the process of rural migration decision into three levels and identifies how psychological and behavioral factors affect people at each level. Researchers collected data from 906 respondents in Japan, including 128 people who had migrated to rural areas. The findings show that environmental and health concerns were significantly associated with initiating the procedure of the rural migration decision, while motives related to spiritual growth and employment were strongly connected with completing the procedure by actually migrating to rural areas. These findings contribute to a better understanding of a question that attracts a great deal of political attention in Japan: Why are rural areas gaining popularity especially after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011? This study represents the first time that the importance of psychological and behavioral traits, as measured by psychometrically sound scales, has been confirmed within a model explaining the decision to migrate to rural areas.
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors used the endogenous succession cycle model and structural modeling technique to determine how the Young Farmer Payment (YFP) incentivizes young farmers to stay in the field of farming.
Abstract: The number of young farmers has decreased over recent decades in several developed countries such as the
United States and European countries. A recent strategy adopted by the European Union to address the resulting
age imbalance is the Young Farmer Payment which provides an additional payment on top of the average basic
payment introduced in the last Common Agricultural Policy reform. The objective of this study is to determine,
by means of a behavioural approach, how this payment in
fl
uenced the incentives of young farmers to stay in the
farm. Using the endogenous succession cycle model and the structural modelling technique, we found that the
payment a
ff
ected young farmers
’
willingness to stay through its in
fl
uence on non-economic motivational goals.
However, we also found that there are other factors that can be even more in
fl
uential, such as pessimism about
farming, community and family integration, participation in decision making, and the opinion of neighbours,
among others. Based on the results, we argue that similar policies could be adopted in other countries, although
policies would be more e
ff
ective in addressing age imbalances if they are accompanied with complementary
strategies aimed to deal with the identi
fi
ed social and psychological considerations.
84 citations
Cites background from "Psychological and Behavioral Predic..."
...…used to identify farmers’ intention to pursue a determined behaviour such as technology adoption, policy adoption, participation in cooperation, entrepreneurial behaviour, and rural immigration, among others (Ajzen, 1985; Bergevoet et al., 2004; May, 2012; Deng et al., 2016; Nakagawa, 2018)....
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors assess people's willingness to adopt (WTA) as well as willingness to pay (WTP) for low temperature air source heat pump (LTHP) technology by conducting field surveys in rural Beijing and empirically characterize the determinants of public acceptance.
Abstract: China has long suffered from severe pollution due to coal consumption in rural areas. One possible solution is the promotion of a new electric heating system, low temperature air source heat pump (LTHP) technology. This paper explores the possibility that the public will accept LTHPs for electric heating. We assess people's willingness to adopt (WTA) as well as willingness to pay (WTP) for LTHP technology and sociodemographic and perception information by conducting field surveys in rural Beijing and empirically characterize the determinants of public acceptance. The analysis reveals that income, science literacy and local environmental concern positively affect WTA and WTP, whereas global environmental concern does not. Contrary to our initial expectation, people in mountainous areas express the highest WTA and WTP, followed by those in hilly and plains areas. These findings suggest that efforts to promote this technology could begin in mountainous areas and move to hilly and then to plains areas, thereby advancing public education on local environmental concerns and science literacy. The adoption of such a plan has the potential to promote electric heating systems in the lowest-cost manner and ensures a cleaner environment through the shift from coal to electricity in rural Beijing.
23 citations
TL;DR: Zhang et al. as mentioned in this paper applied bivariate probit regression and Tobit regression to evaluate the effectiveness of government policies and the influence of cognitive and psychological and socioeconomic factors on coal consumption behaviors, finding that prosociality and local environmental concern play crucial roles in household choices and consumption behaviors between two types of coals.
Abstract: Household low-quality coal consumption contributes to severe haze pollution in China. In response, subsidy policies on high-quality coal consumption and the adoption of new-type coal stoves have been implemented. Using survey data in rural Beijing, this paper characterizes the determinants of coal consumption and switching behavior between low-quality and high-quality coals. To this end, we apply bivariate probit regression and Tobit regression to evaluate the effectiveness of government policies and the influence of cognitive & psychological and socioeconomic factors on coal consumption behaviors. Our empirical results reveal that prosociality and local environmental concern play crucial roles in household choices and consumption behaviors between two types of coals, but global environmental concern does not. The promotion of new-type coal stoves significantly facilitates the transition from low-quality to high-quality coal, while price subsidies on high-quality coal do not influence market acceptance of high-quality coal. These results demonstrate the importance of cognitive & psychological factors and promotion policies on coal consumption behavior. Overall, we suggest that an education campaign or program regarding local environmental awareness, prosocial values and behaviors and on new-type coal stoves should be further promoted to accelerate the transition from low-quality to high-quality coal.
14 citations
Cites background from "Psychological and Behavioral Predic..."
...80 Environmental concerns consist of two types of measurement: global and local environmental concerns 81 (Nakagawa, 2017)....
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TL;DR: In this paper, a behavioural approach based on the theory of planned behaviour was used to understand the reasons behind UK farmers' Brexit voting decision, and found that voting choice was strongly influenced by farmers' perceptions about EU legislation, their attitudes towards the EU, their perceived capacity to control factors that impact on the farm performance, their sense of self and their notions of autonomy within the confines of prescriptive agricultural policy and the influence of their social relationships.
Abstract: In spite of the potential negative effects that Brexit could bring to the United Kingdom (UK), the majority of the electorate voted to leave the European Union (EU). As a result of this paradoxical choice, a number of studies have been developed to understand the factors that triggered this voting decision. Most of them take into account factors related to immigration from East Europe, national identity, and sovereignty recovering, among others. However, these factors do not seem to reflect the reasons behind farmers' Brexit voting choice. Using a behavioural approach based on the theory of planned behaviour, the aim of the study was to contribute to the body of literature by undertaking an indicative study of UK farmers' Brexit voting decisions. The study found that for the sample group, voting choice was strongly influenced by farmers’ perceptions about EU legislation, their attitudes towards the EU, their perceived capacity to control factors that impact on the farm performance, their sense of self and their notions of autonomy within the confines of prescriptive agricultural policy and the influence of their social relationships.
7 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a semi-structured interview with Czech amenity migrants has been used to uncover the social dimension of the phenomenon of rural idyll, focusing on the genesis of their relationship to the rural environment, but also on the consistency and differences between expectations and reality of rural life.
Abstract: Abstract The arrival of amenity migrants has significant impacts for many rural areas in economic, environmental and social terms. While the causes of relocation from cities to remote rural localities can be generally understood as attempts to change the way of life, the consequences of this phenomenon are relatively diverse. Perception of rural space from the migrant´s point of view stems partly from the so-called rural idyll, which shapes the image of the countryside across society, especially through media, tourism and recreation. This study aims to discover links between rural idyll and motivational factors of the Czech amenity migrants. Semi-structured interviews with the Czech amenity migrants have been used in order to uncover the social dimension of the phenomenon of rural idyll. Emphasis has been put both on the genesis of their relationship to the rural environment, but also on the consistency and differences between expectations and the reality of rural life. I identify the key role of tourism and recreation in shaping the initial perception of rural space, whereas the role of media is rather implicit. In the perception of amenity migrants, the initial image of rural space differed only slightly when the physical environment of rural space is considered but a mismatch is found between initial ideas about rural communities and their real experience after moving there.
6 citations
References
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TL;DR: In this sense, structuralism does not entail a denial of time; it does involve a certain manner of dealing with time and what we call history as mentioned in this paper, which is the effort to establish, between elements that could have been connected on a temporal axis, an ensemble of relations that makes them appear as juxtaposed, set off against one another, implicated by each other, making them appear, in short, as a sort of configuration.
Abstract: The great obsession of the nineteenth century was, as we know, history: with its themes of development and of suspension, of crisis and cycle, themes of the ever-accumulating past, with its great preponderance of dead men and the menacing glaciation of the world. The nineteenth century found its essential mythological resources in the second principle of thermodynamics. The present epoch will perhaps be above all the epoch of space. We are in the epoch of simultaneity: we are in the epoch of juxtaposition, the epoch of the near and far, of the side-by-side, of the dispersed. We are at a moment, I believe, when our experience of the world is less that of a long life developing through time than that of a network that connects points and intersects with its own skein. One could perhaps say that certain ideological conflicts animating present-day polemics oppose the pious descendents of time and the determined inhabitants of space. Structuralism, or at least that which is grouped under this slightly too general name, is the effort to establish, between elements that could have been connected on a temporal axis, an ensemble of relations that makes them appear as juxtaposed, set off against one another, implicated by each otherthat makes them appear, in short, as a sort of configuration. Actually, structuralism does not entail a denial of time; it does involve a certain manner of dealing with what we call time and what we call history. Yet it is necessary to notice that the space which today appears to form the horizon of our concerns, our theory, our systems, is not an innovation; space itself has a history in Western experience and it i s not possible to disregard the fatal intersection of time with space. One could say, by way of retracing this history of space very roughiy, that in the Middle Ages there was a hierarchic ensemble of places: sacred places and profane places; protected places and open, exposed places; urban places and rural places (all these concern the real life of men). In cosmological theory, there were the supercelestial places, as opposed to the celestial, and the celestial place was in its turn opposed to the terrestrial place. There were places where things had been put because they had been violently displaced, and then on the contrary places where things found their natural ground and stability. It was this complete hierarchy, this opposition, this intersection of places that constituted what could very roughly be called medieval space: the space of emplacement.
4,274 citations
TL;DR: The number of these influences suggests that understanding pro-environmental concern and behaviour is far more complex than previously thought, and a primary goal of researchers now should be to learn more about how these many influences moderate and mediate one another to determine pro-Environmental behaviour.
Abstract: We review the personal and social influences on pro-environmental concern and behaviour, with an emphasis on recent research. The number of these influences suggests that understanding pro-environmental concern and behaviour is far more complex than previously thought. The influences are grouped into 18 personal and social factors. The personal factors include childhood experience, knowledge and education, personality and self-construal, sense of control, values, political and world views, goals, felt responsibility, cognitive biases, place attachment, age, gender and chosen activities. The social factors include religion, urban-rural differences, norms, social class, proximity to problematic environmental sites and cultural and ethnic variations We also recognize that pro-environmental behaviour often is undertaken based on none of the above influences, but because individuals have non-environmental goals such as to save money or to improve their health. Finally, environmental outcomes that are a result of these influences undoubtedly are determined by combinations of the 18 categories. Therefore, a primary goal of researchers now should be to learn more about how these many influences moderate and mediate one another to determine pro-environmental behaviour.
1,099 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a review of studies that have attempted to show correlations between determinants, such as socio-demographic and/or psychological factors, and environmental concern, and an impact of environmental concern on environmentally responsible behaviour.
Abstract: A serious threat to human beings and their environment is the continuous and accelerating overuse and destruction of natural resources. Bearing this in mind, it is unfortunate that efforts to permanently change people's environmentally destructive behaviour through interventions has typically not been met with success. A necessary condition may be an increase in environmental concern and knowledge about the effects and consequences of the ongoing environmental deterioration for future generations. Studies are reviewed that have attempted to show (1) correlations between determinants, such as socio-demographic and/or psychological factors, and environmental concern, and (2) an impact of environmental concern on environmentally responsible behaviour. In general, correlations with background factors are weak. Factors affecting behaviour appear to be knowledge, internal locus of control (positive control beliefs), personal responsibility, and perceived threats to personal health. The need for further research that attempts to specify the process leading to environmentally responsible behaviour is highlighted. A new framework is presented which integrates some of the previous research.
1,014 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors define the limits of the term lifestyle migration, the characteristics of the lifestyle sought, and the place of this form of migration in the contemporary world, and map the various migrations that can be considered under this broad rubric, recognising the similarities and differences in their migration trajectories.
Abstract: For the past few years, the term ‘lifestyle migration’ has been used to refer to an increasing number of people who take the decision to migrate based on their belief that there is a more fulfilling way of life available to them elsewhere. Lifestyle migration is thus a growing, disparate phenomenon, with important but little understood implications for both societies and individuals. This article outlines and explores in detail a series of mobilities that have in common relative affluence and this search for a better lifestyle. We attempt to define the limits of the term lifestyle migration, the characteristics of the lifestyle sought, and the place of this form of migration in the contemporary world. In this manner, we map the various migrations that can be considered under this broad rubric, recognising the similarities and differences in their migration trajectories. Further to this, drawing on the sociological literature on lifestyle, we provide an initial theoretical conceptualisation of this phenomenon, attempting to explain its recent escalation in various guises, and investigating the historical, sociological, and individualised conditions that inspire this migration. This article is thus the first step in defining a broader programme for the study of lifestyle migration. We contend that the study of this migration is especially important in the current era given the impact such moves have on places and people at both ends of the migratory chain.
799 citations
TL;DR: The authors argue that the word counterurbanization is too broad to cover its depth of meaning and propose adoption of three concepts to describe the changing spatial redistribution of population: counterurban, counterurbanizing, and counterurbanisation.
Abstract: Non-metropolitan population growth has received extensive consideration since it was first observed in the United States nearly 30 years ago The emergence, weakening and selective reappearance of this phenomenon across much of the developed world has spawned a large body of applied and academic literature Many terms and phrases have been coined to describe this redistribution of population within the settlement system The word “counterurbanization” is one that has received on-going attention in the literature Although its verification, explanation and interpretation have occupied many research agendas, lack of consistency in definition hinders comparability In this paper, I argue that the word counterurbanization is too broad to cover its depth of meaning In its place, I propose adoption of three concepts to describe the changing spatial redistribution of population: counterurban, counterurbanizing, and counterurbanization A framework integrating these concepts is offered, and templates for future study described This exercise is timely given the recent release of census data
341 citations