The unsafe use and misuse of pesticides in China are major threats to farmers’ health and the environment. The purpose of this study is to evaluate small-scale farmers’ practices with regard to pesticide use and identify the determinants of their behavior in Anqiu County, China. The results show that the frequency of pesticide application by local farmers is high and that the improper disposal of pesticides after use is common in the study area. Although most farmers felt that they were at some degree of risk when using pesticides, farmers were found to overuse pesticides in the study area. The probability of pesticide overuse significantly decreased with farmers’ risk perceptions, willingness to reduce pesticide use, better social relationships, and strict government monitoring. The perception of risk can thus be an important element in education and communication efforts.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of farmers’ risk preferences on their decisions to purchase the agricultural weather index insurance based on the evidence from a household survey and field experiments conducted in Yongqiao District, Suzhou City of Anhui Province in China. Our empirical results show that farmers’ risk aversion significantly increases the probability of their decision to buy weather index-based crop insurance. Other factors that significantly influence weather index insurance participation decisions include farmers’ subjective beliefs on the probability of crop losses, farming experience, education level, farm size, and their household income. The empirical results of this study can provide helpful insights for policymakers and local insurers to further improve farmers’ participation in weather index-based crop insurance.