Work

From Adoption to Use Intensity: Farm Machinery Use and Farmers’ Subjective Well-Being in Rural China

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Agricultural mechanization reshapes production, yet its relationship with farmers’ subjective well-being remains unclear. Using data from 2079 crop-producing households in the 2020 China Rural Revitalization Survey, this study measures farm machinery use intensity as the mean mechanized area share across five production stages, incorporating household-owned machinery and outsourced services. Ordered logit estimates indicate a positive association that persists across alternative estimators and measures. Based on the average marginal effect, a one-standard-deviation increase in intensity corresponds, as a local approximation, to a 5.1-percentage-point higher probability of reporting “very happy.” Higher machinery use intensity is associated with lower household farm labor input per mu, higher per capita household income, and better self-rated health. Interaction tests support a stronger positive association among larger-scale households but do not establish differences by livestock production or age. These findings extend mechanization assessment from adoption to actual use intensity and highlight household welfare alongside production outcomes.

Source: Agriculture

DOI: 10.3390/agriculture16212419

Authors: Shixing Zheng, Peng Yuan, Wenqi Wang, Meng Zhang

Institutions: Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Nanjing Institute of Agricultural Mechanization

Language: English

Topic: Agricultural Innovations and Practices

Subfield: General Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Domain: Life Sciences

SDGs: Decent work and economic growth, Zero hunger

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,137