Driving factors of farmers' non-grain production of cropland in the hilly and mountainous areas

The rational and efficient use of cropland is an important way to stabilize the balance between food supply and demand, ensure sustainable agricultural development, and guarantee national food security. However, there has been a tendency for non-grain planting of cultivated land in recent years. Investigating the driving factors of farmers' non-grain planting in hilly and mountainous areas is meaningful. This study extended the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) by introducing the variable of risk-carrying capacity, and the results supported that the integrative model was more efficient in explaining non-grain production behavior. Farmers' risk-carrying capacity and subjective norm were the most important determinants of their planting behavioral intention. Besides, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control mediated the paths of risk-carrying capacity to farmers' non-grain crops growing intention. Most importantly, there were differences in the behavior mechanism of farmers of different ages and working statuses. These findings provided a clear evidence understanding of farmers' non-grain planting behavior and could help program planners design policy interventions.