Analyze Farmers' Views and Behavior on Groundwater Conservation: A Case Study of Bala darband Rural District, Kermanshah Province

In most parts of Iran, agriculture is dependent on groundwater resources. Groundwater resources exploitation rate depends basically on the attitude, knowledge, managerial, and conservation behaviors of farmers. In the present study, farmers' perspectives and behavior towards conservation of groundwater resources have been studied and analyzed in Baladarband village of Kermanshah. The statistical population of this study included irrigated farmers of Baladarband village in the 2018-2019 cropping year (N= 750). The sample size estimated to be 254 using the Cochran's formula. This study has been done by survey method and a researcher-made questionnaire as the research tool. The validity of the questionnaire has been confirmed by relevant a panel of experts and specialists. The validity of the factors was confirmed using Alpha (α<0.7) and composite reliability (CR <0.7) coefficients and average variance explained (AVE> 0.5). SPSS20, AMOS20, and ArcMap software were used to analyze the data. Analysis of direct and indirect effects in the research model revealed that the constructs behavioral control, self-efficacy, knowledge and awareness, behavioral intention, subjective norm, and attitude ranked first to sixth places in terms of predictive power. The findings of this study can enable managers and planners to manage groundwater resources properly in the study area.