Climate change and food security are critical topics in sustainable agricultural development. The climate-smart agriculture initiative proposed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has attracted international attention. Smart agriculture (SA) has since been recognized as an influential trend contributing to agricultural development. Therefore, encouraging farmers to adopt digital technologies and mobile devices in farming practices has become a policy priority worldwide. However, the literature on the psychological factors driving farmers’ intentions to adopt SA technologies remains limited. This study investigated how farmers’ knowledge and attitudes regarding SA affect their adoption of smart technologies in Taiwan. A total of 321 farmers participated in a survey in 2017 and 2018, and the data were used to construct an ordinary least squares regression model of SA adoption. This study provides a preliminary understanding of the relationship between psychological factors and innovation adoption of SA technologies in a small-scale farming economic context. The findings suggest that policymakers and research and development institutes should concentrate on improving market access to established and critical SA technologies.

Innovative applications of smart technology constitute a current trend in agricultural development. This study employed a technology acceptance model to explore the intention of young farmers to apply Internet of Things systems in field-level management of Taiwanese farms. An online questionnaire was used to collect data regarding farmers aged 45 years or younger who were currently engaged in agricultural production. Statistical analysis of 241 valid questionnaires revealed that young farmers’ intention to use innovative technologies was affected mainly by perceived organizational support, followed by average annual turnover, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and sense of trust in the system supplier. This study suggests that agricultural administration agencies should consider farmers’ farming needs and intention to use; agencies should employ problem-solving and design thinking when developing smart agriculture policies. Insightful design of incentives and guidance measures enables young farmers to maximize achievement and to minimize effort.

Taiwan’s agriculture is again generating local interest after years of decline as awareness of problems facing development and food safety grows. Agriculture-related social entrepreneurship is seen as a crucial solution to the challenges faced and has gradually become part of mainstream business in rural areas. This study examined whether empathy, social responsibility, social capital and support, and social entrepreneurial self-efficacy affect social entrepreneurial intentions. Through an online and offline survey, a sample of Taiwanese agricultural college students (n=464) were recruited for analysis. The factor analyses supported previous studies and proved that the factor structures of subscales used in this study were stable, with the exception of social entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Multiple regression analysis results indicated that management efficacy was the most prominent factor affecting social entrepreneurial conviction, followed by stakeholder perspective and communication efficacy. In addition, management efficacy was the strongest factor affecting social entrepreneurial preparation, followed by stakeholder perspective and affective empathy. Notably, cognitive empathy was revealed to be negatively associated with social entrepreneurial preparation. Social capital and support were found to have no association with social entrepreneurial intentions.

This study explored the effects of purchase preference, perceived value, and marketing mix on consumers’ purchase intention and willingness to pay for pork in Taiwan. A questionnaire was distributed to pork consumers in an online platform, and a total of 1042 valid samples were collected. An analysis of the questionnaire responses revealed three purchase preference factors, namely flavour, certification marks, and added features; four perceived value factors, namely functional, social, conditional, and emotional value; and four marketing mix factors, namely promotion, convenience, product, and price marketing. Functional value, purchase frequency, conditional value, and product marketing positively affected purchase intention. Promotional marketing, monthly disposable income, and social value were the main positive factors in increased willingness to pay. Consumers who were men, had a lower educational level, purchased large quantities of pork at one time, or frequently purchased pork exhibited higher purchase intention than did other consumers. Those who were men, had higher educational attainment, had a higher monthly disposable income, or held a management position were more willing to purchase pork at a premium price.