Pro‐environmental claims versus carbon realities: Behavioural insights of smallholder mandarin farmers in Nepal

Agriculture is one of the major sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and promoting Pro‐Environmental Behaviour (PEB) among farmers offers substantial potential for climate change mitigation. However, understanding of the psychological factors shaping farmers' perceived PEB and how these perceptions align with their actual environmental performance remains limited.

This study applied Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and employed covariance‐based structural equation modelling to explore relationships among attitude, subjective norms, Perceived Behavioural Control (PBC), behavioural intention and PEB, alongside a comparison between self‐reported and actual PEB.

A web‐based Qualtrics survey was conducted to assess perceived PEB, and semi‐structured interviews were used to collect farm‐level data to estimate carbon footprint as a proxy for actual behaviour among 120 mandarin farmers in Syangja, Nepal, selected using a multi‐stage sampling approach.

Attitude and PBC were strong predictors of behavioural intention, while subjective norms showed weaker influence. Behavioural intention significantly predicted PEB and education, training participation and household income moderated several of these relationships, highlighting socio‐economic variation in behavioural determinants.

Comparison between perceived and actual PEB revealed a moderate correlation, with 71% of the variance unexplained. This indicates a substantial gap between farmers' self‐perceptions and their measurable environmental outcomes, suggesting that self‐reported indicators alone may overstate pro‐environmental performance.

Reducing barriers to PBC and strengthening positive environmental attitudes are key to promoting genuine PEB. Engaging governmental, institutional and peer networks can reinforce farmers' control beliefs and collective climate action. Future research should examine the drivers of alignment between perceived and actual PEB to enhance the reliability of behavioural assessment and inform evidence‐based agricultural climate policies.