Volume 29, Issue 1
DOI: 10.24205/03276716.2020.114
EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS ON PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH OF FARMERS IN POVERTY-STRICKEN MOUNTAINOUS AREAS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF SOCIAL CAPITAL
Abstract
The psychological health of the impoverished Chinese farmers in mountainous areas has received less attention than it deserves. From the perspective of social capital, this paper empirically analyzes the psychological health of farmers in poverty-stricken mountainous areas. First, a 2 month-long questionnaire survey was conducted among farmers in the impoverished areas of Qinba Mountains, China. Based on the data of 680 farmers, the social capital was measured from three dimensions: social network, social trust and social support. In addition, the structural equation model was adopted to analyze the impacts of social capital on the psychological health of these farmers. The results show that social capital greatly promotes the psychological health of farmersin poverty-stricken mountainous areas; each dimension of social capital has a significant positive effect on the psychological health of these farmers; the three dimensions are ranked as social trust > social support > social network by the degree of impact. The research results provide an important guide for psychological health of the impoverished Chinese farmers in mountainous areas.