THE INFLUENCE OF CULTURAL FACTORS ON THE ACCEPTANCE OF ALTERNATE WETTING AND DRYING TECHNOLOGY AMONG RICE FARMERS IN THE VIETNAMESE MEKONG DELTA

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explore the determinants in the adoption of Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) technology. For this purpose, we propose an AWD technology acceptance model based mainly on the technology acceptance model (TAM) and other relevant theories. Eight factors are included to assess the model: awareness (AW), social influence (SI), facilitation conditions (FC), agro-engineering setting (AS), perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEOU), attitude towards the use (AT), and behavioral intention (BI). The study draws on semi-structured interviews with 150 rice farmers in three locations in the VMD, including Vinh Thanh district in Can Tho city, Tieu Can district in Tra Vinh province, and Thoai Son district in An Giang province. This study employs the structural equation modeling (SEM) method to test and confirm the hypothesized model. Results indicate that eight out of 12 hypotheses were supported, while four were not supported. Data on actual adoption also reveal that social factors were considerable drivers for farmers to adopt AWD technology. The study is novel and valuable since it employs the TAM to study the factors influencing the acceptance of AWD technology in the VMD context.