Socioeconomic Determinants of Farmers’ Attitudes toward Climate AdaptationPractices in Northern Bangladesh
311 / 181
Keywords:
Farmers’ attitudes, Climate change adaptation, Extension services, Educational opportunities, Northern Bangladesh.Abstract
The objective of the study conducted during 2025 was to determine the factors contributing to farmers’ attitudes toward climate adaptation practices. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with 98 sampled farmers in the Dinajpur district of northern Bangladesh. Descriptive statistics, Pearson’s product-moment correlation, and stepwise multiple regression analysis were used for data analysis. The results indicated that most farmers (72.4%) had a moderately favorable attitude toward climate adaptation practices. Pearson’s correlation analysis showed that education, farm size, household income, organizational participation, and information access had significant positive relationships with farmers’ attitudes toward climate adaptation practices. Multiple regression analysis revealed that education and information access were the most significant determinants of farmers’ attitudes, explaining 36.6% of the variation. In the stepwise regression model, only education and information access emerged as significant predictors, jointly explaining 29.8% of the variation in farmers’ attitudes toward climate change adaptation practices. Education alone explained 25.5% of the variation, while the inclusion of information access contributed an additional 4.3%. The findings suggest that improving non-formal education and strengthening extension services through farm and home visits, mass media campaigns, and ICT-based information dissemination can enhance farmers’ adaptive attitudes and promote climate-resilient agricultural practices in Bangladesh.
References
1. Ali, M. A., Karim, M. R., Ahmed, K., & Mondol, M. A. S. (2021). Perception of farmers on maize as a potential crop for climate change adaptation in northern Bangladesh. International Journal of Environment and Climate Change, 11(1), 11–21. https://doi.org/10.9734/ijecc/2021/v11i130342
2. Ali, M. Y., & Meisner, C. (2017). Climate-smart agriculture in Bangladesh (Technical report). International Food Policy Research Institute.
3. Aryal, J. P., Rahut, D. B., Maharjan, S., & Erenstein, O. (2018). Factors affecting the adoption of multiple climate-smart agricultural practices in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India. Natural Resources Forum, 42, 141–158. https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-8947.12152
4. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). (2025). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. Ministry of Planning, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.
5. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). (2024). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. Ministry of Planning, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.
6. Billah, M. M., Rahman, M. M., Mahimairaja, S., Lal, A., Srinivasulu, A., & Naidu, R. (2025). Constraints and prospects of adoption of climate smart agriculture interventions: Implication for farm sustainability. Climate Smart Agriculture, 2(3), 100066. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csag.2025.100066
7. Biswas, A., Mittra, P. K., Biswas, S., Majumder, D., & Debnath, P. (2026). Farmers perceived effectiveness of agricultural extension services for climate smart agricultural practices: Insights from a selected coastal area of Bangladesh. Agricultural & Rural Studies, 4(1), 18–18. https://doi.org/10.59978/ar04010005
8. Concern Worldwide, Welthungerhilfe, & Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict. (2025). Global Hunger Index.
9. Coumou, D., Petoukhov, V., Rahmstorf, S., Petri, S., & Schellnhuber, H. J. (2014). Quasi-resonant circulation regimes and hemispheric synchronization of extreme weather in boreal summer. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(34), 12331–12336.
10. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). (2014). FAO success stories on climate-smart agriculture.
11. Ghanghas B.S., Shehrawat P.S., & Nain M.S. (2015). Knowledge of extension professionals regarding impact of climate change in agriculture. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 51(3&4), 125-129.
12. Gujarati, D. N., & Porter, D. C. (1999). Essentials of econometrics. McGraw-Hill.
13. Haque, A. T. M. S., Miah, M. A. M., & Rahman, M. Z. (2007). A comparison between organic and inorganic farmers’ attitude towards organic farming. Bangladesh Journal of Extension Education, 19(1–2), 57–62.
14. Hasan, M. F., Hossain, M. F., Rahman, M. S., & Sarmin, S. (2019). Factors contributing to farmers' attitude towards practicing aquaculture in Dinajpur district of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Journal of Extension Education, 31(1–2), 77–85.
15. Hasan, M. K., Desiere, S., D’Haese, M., & Kumar, L. (2018). Impact of climate-smart agriculture adoption on the food security of coastal farmers in Bangladesh. Food Security, 10, 1073–1088. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-018-0824-1
16. Jayasingh, D. K., & Mishra, B. (2024). Factors influencing occupational diversification among farmers in Odisha: A quantitative analysis. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 60(3), 37–41. https://doi.org/10.48165/IJEE.2024.60308
17. Karim, M. R. (2015). Adaptation to climate change through participation in the Teesta floodplain area of Bangladesh (Master’s thesis, Humboldt University of Berlin).
18. Karim, M. R., Ampony, D., Muhammad, N., Noman, M. R. F., & Rahman, M. S. (2017). Factors affecting adoption of local adaptation options to climate change vulnerability. Journal of Science and Technology, 16, 1–8.
19. Karim, M. R., & Thiel, A. (2017). Role of community-based local institution for climate change adaptation in Teesta riverine area of Bangladesh. Climate Risk Management, 17, 92–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crm.2017.06.002
20. Kassie, M., Jaleta, M., Shiferaw, B., Mmbando, F., & Mekuria, M. (2013). Adoption of interrelated sustainable agricultural practices in smallholder systems: Evidence from rural Tanzania. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 80(3), 525–540. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2012.08.007
21. Likert, R. (1932). A technique for the measurement of attitudes. Archives of Psychology, 22(140), 1–55.
22. Mahashin, M., & Roy, R. (2017). Mapping practices and technologies of climate-smart agriculture in Bangladesh. Journal of Environmental Science & Natural Resources, 10(2), 29–37.
23. Mamun, A. A., Roy, S., Islam, A. R. M. T., Alam, G. M. M., Alam, E., Pal, S. C., Sattar, M. A., & Mallick, J. (2021). Smallholder farmers’ perceived climate-related risk, impact, and their choices of sustainable adaptation strategies. Sustainability, 13(21), 11922. https://doi.org/10.3390/su132111922
24. Mango, N., Makate, C., Tamene, L., Mponela, P., & Ndengu, G. (2017). Awareness and adoption of land, soil and water conservation practices in the Chinyanja Triangle, Southern Africa. International Soil and Water Conservation Research, 5, 122–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iswcr.2017.04.003
25. Miller, R. L., & Brewer, J. D. (2003). A–Z of social research. SAGE Publications.
26. Ministry of Environment and Forests. (2009). Bangladesh climate change strategy and action plan (BCCSAP) 2009. Government of Bangladesh.
27. Morand, F., & Barzman, M. (2006). European sustainable development policy (1972–2005): Fostering a two-dimensional integration for more effective institutions. Working Paper.
28. Mulwa, C., Marenya, P., Rahut, D. B., & Kassie, M. (2017). Response to climate risks among smallholder farmers in Malawi: A multivariate probit assessment. Climate Risk Management, 16, 208–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crm.2017.01.002
29. Munasib, A., & Jordan, J. (2011). The effect of social capital on the choice to use sustainable agricultural practices. Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, 43(2), 213–227. https://doi.org/10.1017/S107407080000417X
30. Nicol, A. A. M., & Pexman, P. M. (2010). Presenting your table: A practical guide for creating tables. American Psychological Association.
31. Rahman, M. S., Karim, M. R., Barman, J. K., & Islam, M. M. (2020). Farmers’ attitude towards production and utilization of biochar as ecofriendly practice. Advances in Research, 21(2), 38–46. https://doi.org/10.9734/air/2020/v21i230189
32. Rahman, M. S., Sujan, M. H. K., Acharjee, D. C., Rasha, R. K., & Rahman, M. (2022). Intensity of adoption and welfare impacts of drought-tolerant rice varieties cultivation in Bangladesh. Heliyon, 8(5), e09490. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09490
33. Rashid, M. M., Mondol, M. A. S., Rahman, M. S., & Jackson, T. (2026). Factors influencing agricultural diversification: The case of northern Bangladesh. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 62(2), 79–85. https://doi.org/10.48165/IJEE.2026.62213
34. Roy, R., Chan, N. W., Uemura, T., & Imura, H. (2013). The vision of agri-environmental sustainability in Bangladesh: How policies, strategies and institutions delivered? Journal of Environmental Protection, 4, 40–51. https://doi.org/10.4236/jep.2013.48A2006
35. Shahin, A., Sarmin, S., & Hasan, M. F. (2024). Factors influencing farmers’ attitude towards e-governance in agricultural services in Dinajpur District, Bangladesh. Journal of Agricultural Extension, 28(4), 59–69. https://doi.org/10.4314/jae.v28i4.7
36. Shitu A. G., Nain M. S., & Singh R. (2018). Developing extension model for smallholder farmers uptake of precision conservation agricultural practices in developing nations: Learning from rice-wheat system of Africa and India. Current Science, 114(4), 814-825.
37. Sthitaprajna, S., & Shasani, S. (2026). Factors influencing farmers’ adaptive capacity to climate change. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 62(1), 195–199. https://doi.org/10.48165/IJEE.2026.621RN02
Downloads
Published
Data Availability Statement
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Indian Society of Extension Education, Division of Agricultural ExtensionICAR- IARI, New Delhi

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
- The manuscripts once accepted and published in the Indian Journal of Extension Education will automatically become the property of the Indian Society of Extension Education, New Delhi. The Chief Editor on behalf of the Indian Journal of Extension Education holds the copyright.