An Intervention Research On Farmers' Pesticide Using Knowledge And Behavior In A County Of Yunnan Province

Pesticides play an irreplaceable role in preventing diseases and pests of crops,reducing the loss of agricultural products and ensuring the income of farmers.However,due to lacking of pesticide related knowledge,farmers' unscientific,irrational use of pesticides can bring serious public health problems.Pesticide abuse not only endangers food safety and ecological environment,but also poses a serious threat to farmers'health.From farmers' perspective,this study first investigated the knowledge and behavior of pesticide use among farmers in a county of Yunnan Province,and then conducted health education interventions,hoping that farmers could master correct knowledge and use pesticides scientifically and reasonably.Objectives:To spread correct knowledge of pesticides use to farmers in a county of Yunnan via health education interventions,and to improve their cognitive level and change farmers' unscientific and irrational behavior of using pesticides so as to reduce health and environmental hazards caused by pesticides abuse in the process of planting.Meanwhile,to evaluate the effects of health education interventions on changing the knowledge and behavior of farmers' pesticide use so as to provide reasonable and effective interventions for the protection of ecological environment and farmers' health,and to provide scientific evidence to inform policy development.Methods:We conducted the research at 6 natural villages in 3 townships of a vegetable growing county in Yunnan province.We employed questionnaire survey for both the baseline survey and the post intervention survey,and evaluated the effects of health education interventions by comparing the results of baseline survey and post-intervention survey.Results:The awareness rates of all 6 pesticide related knowledge points were increased from 33.81%-74.28%in baseline survey to 53.59%-79.15%after the intervention,of which the increasing of three knowledge points was statistically significant.The difference of the total pesticide related knowledge scores before and after intervention was statistically significant(Z=-10.18,P<0.05)with higher scores in the post intervention group than that of baseline group.Compared with the baseline survey,4 items of correct protective behaviors in the use of pesticides were significantly improved from 1.44%-30.46%to 5.16-54.71%after intervention.There was significant difference in the overall protective behavior level of farmers before and after intervention(Z=-4.24,P<0.05),and the overall protective behavior level after intervention was better than that in baseline survey.The difference in the level of farmers' cleaning behavior after using pesticides was statistically significant before and after intervention(Z=19.35,P<0.05).After the intervention,the overall level of cleaning behavior of the farmers was better than that of the baseline survey.There was no statistically significant difference between farmers'other pesticide using related behaviors before and after intervention(Z=-0.739,P=0.46).Through multivariate logistic regression analysis,it was found that health education was a promotion factor of farmers' knowledge level,after 2 kinds of interventions,the knowledge level could increase by 5.08 times,and after 3 kinds of interventions,the knowledge level could increase by 5.73 times.Health knowledge training is another promoting factor for farmers to adopt protective behavior when using pesticide.After receiving health knowledge training,the probability of farmers adopting protective behavior would increase by 2.17 times.The intervention of street drama performance was a promotion factor of cleaning behavior of farmers after using pesticide.After the intervention of street drama performance,the likelihood of farmers taking cleaning behavior increased by 1.96 times.The educational level and street drama performance were the promotion factors of farmers' other pesticide using related behavior.After street drama performance,the probability of farmers taking correct behavior increased by 2.26 times.Conclusion:Health education can significantly improve farmers' pesticide related knowledge level and correct pesticide using related behavior level.Farmers received more health education intervention measures,they would have higher possibility of increasing their knowledge level.Health education can effectively improve the correct protective behavior of farmers when using pesticides.Among the three health education interventions,health knowledge training is more targeted,systematic and organized,and therefore is more effective in making farmers take protective behavior in using pesticides.The street drama can deeply impress farmers and is effective to promote their cleaning behavior and other pesticide using related behaviors.Comparing the effects of the three health education interventions,health knowledge training and street drama performance have better results than that of health knowledge calendar.This is mainly because the intervention of health knowledge calendar needs farmers ' self reading and learning while most farmers are older with limited education.Although different interventions have different effects on farmers,it can be concluded that the more kinds of interventions the better results can be achieved.These health education methods are simple,low-cost and having good effect,which can be scaled up in rural grassroots.