Modeling Farmers’ Coping Responses to Climate Change Stress: An Application of Cognitive Stress Theory

This study aims to develop and examine Lazarus and Folkman’s psychological stress and coping theory, utilizing scales that measure problem-focused and emotion-focused coping in the context of environmental issues, as defined by Homburg and colleagues, to predict adaptation behavior in agriculture. The goal is to analyze Iranian farmers’ problem-focused and emotion-focused coping styles in response to climate change stress. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), we examined the effects of cognitive appraisals, including demand appraisal and self-efficacy, along with collective efficacy, on problem- and emotion-focused coping. The data for this study were collected through paper-based questionnaires from 250 farmers in Iran. Our results indicate that the perception of increased threat and harm posed by water scarcity to agricultural income and health (demand appraisal), the belief in one’s ability to adapt (self-efficacy), and the perception of the effectiveness of collaborative efforts among farmers in enhancing adaptation (collective efficacy) are associated with both problem- and emotion-focused coping responses. Notably, the Cognitive Theory of Stress model was a stronger predictor of problem-focused coping, accounting for 91% of the variance, compared to just 15% for emotion-focused coping. The results from this study shed light on the cognitive processes most associated with particular types of coping styles. Our findings may inform and guide climate change policy and programs that aim to target and enhance farmers’ climate change adaptation and resilience.