How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from China

Farmer differentiation is a prevalent phenomenon in developing countries, such as China, which is expected to have a profound effect on rural collective actions, especially in the realm of agricultural irrigation. Despite this, few studies have been conducted to investigate the impact of farmer diff...

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Main Authors: Ming Chang, Hongxu Shi, Shiya Yuan, Kelin Chen, Xueyan Zhang, Jinhao Zhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-05-01
Series:Agricultural Water Management
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425001507
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author Ming Chang
Hongxu Shi
Shiya Yuan
Kelin Chen
Xueyan Zhang
Jinhao Zhang
author_facet Ming Chang
Hongxu Shi
Shiya Yuan
Kelin Chen
Xueyan Zhang
Jinhao Zhang
author_sort Ming Chang
collection DOAJ
description Farmer differentiation is a prevalent phenomenon in developing countries, such as China, which is expected to have a profound effect on rural collective actions, especially in the realm of agricultural irrigation. Despite this, few studies have been conducted to investigate the impact of farmer differentiation on agricultural water utilization. This research utilizes China's provincial panel data to construct indicators of farmer differentiation and agricultural water use efficiency through the entropy method and super-efficient DEA, and investigate how farmer differentiation affects agricultural water use efficiency. Our findings reveal a significant negative effect of farmer differentiation on overall agricultural water use efficiency. Mechanism analysis indicates that inadequate facility management has a negative mediating effect between farmer differentiation and agricultural water use efficiency, while large-scale grain crop production has a positive mediating effect. Additionally, the investment in small farmland water conservancy and central investment have a positive moderating effect. Notably, when the proportion of investment in maintenance of farmland water conservancy exceeds a certain threshold, the negative impact of farmer differentiation on agricultural water use efficiency can be eliminated. This study provides targeted recommendations on how to improve agricultural water use efficiency in the current situation of farmer differentiation.
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publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Agricultural Water Management
spelling doaj-art-caac80fde4d14daf86a616e65d6a39d62025-08-20T02:26:40ZengElsevierAgricultural Water Management1873-22832025-05-0131210943610.1016/j.agwat.2025.109436How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from ChinaMing Chang0Hongxu Shi1Shiya Yuan2Kelin Chen3Xueyan Zhang4Jinhao Zhang5Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, ChinaSchool of Economics and Management, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China; Corresponding author.School of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, ChinaSchool of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, ChinaSchool of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, ChinaSchool of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, ChinaFarmer differentiation is a prevalent phenomenon in developing countries, such as China, which is expected to have a profound effect on rural collective actions, especially in the realm of agricultural irrigation. Despite this, few studies have been conducted to investigate the impact of farmer differentiation on agricultural water utilization. This research utilizes China's provincial panel data to construct indicators of farmer differentiation and agricultural water use efficiency through the entropy method and super-efficient DEA, and investigate how farmer differentiation affects agricultural water use efficiency. Our findings reveal a significant negative effect of farmer differentiation on overall agricultural water use efficiency. Mechanism analysis indicates that inadequate facility management has a negative mediating effect between farmer differentiation and agricultural water use efficiency, while large-scale grain crop production has a positive mediating effect. Additionally, the investment in small farmland water conservancy and central investment have a positive moderating effect. Notably, when the proportion of investment in maintenance of farmland water conservancy exceeds a certain threshold, the negative impact of farmer differentiation on agricultural water use efficiency can be eliminated. This study provides targeted recommendations on how to improve agricultural water use efficiency in the current situation of farmer differentiation.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425001507Farmer differentiationAgricultural water use efficiencyMechanism analysisThreshold effects
spellingShingle Ming Chang
Hongxu Shi
Shiya Yuan
Kelin Chen
Xueyan Zhang
Jinhao Zhang
How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from China
Agricultural Water Management
Farmer differentiation
Agricultural water use efficiency
Mechanism analysis
Threshold effects
title How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from China
title_full How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from China
title_fullStr How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from China
title_full_unstemmed How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from China
title_short How does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency? Evidence from China
title_sort how does farmer differentiation effect agricultural water use efficiency evidence from china
topic Farmer differentiation
Agricultural water use efficiency
Mechanism analysis
Threshold effects
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425001507
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AT kelinchen howdoesfarmerdifferentiationeffectagriculturalwateruseefficiencyevidencefromchina
AT xueyanzhang howdoesfarmerdifferentiationeffectagriculturalwateruseefficiencyevidencefromchina
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