Factors Influencing Farmers’ Willingness to Adopt Drone Technology in Ethnic Regions

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1674-9391.2024.10.012

Abstract： The emergence of New Quality Productivity has been" an important driving force for promoting economic development， transforming" traditional production systems and" profoundly reshaping" economic structures. Moreover， this development of new quality productive forces" holds particular significance for ethnic regions and can significantly boost the local economy and society. Drones， as" a prominent technology within the realm of New Quality Productivity， are reshaping the production methods and efficiency of different industries; as such， the" promotion of drones can be" beneficial for the economic development of ethnic minority areas. From current research and" real-life experience， it can be said that" the" New Quality Productivity" represented by drone technology is revolutionizing agricultural practices by improving operational efficiency， offering enhanced production capabilities" for farmers in ethnic areas，" contributing to rural revitalization and promoting sustainable development of the local economy. However， in reality， farmers in ethnic areas exhibit a relatively low willingness to adopt new quality" products" such as drones." Addressing this adoption challenge is vital to unlocking the transformative potential that drone technology can bring to these lands.

This article is based on the Technology Acceptance Model （TAM）， supplemented with external environmental variables， and added the moderating effect of individual characteristics of farmers to form a theoretical model. By collecting" empirical" data on the application of drone technology in ethnic areas of Sichuan province from March to May 2024， a survey was conducted specifically focusing on regions such as Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture， Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture， and Mabian Yi Autonomous County. Structured interviews and questionnaires were used， and questionnaire items were designed based on" TAM using the" five-point" Likert scale. A total of 793 questionnaires were distributed， with 752 valid responses， resulting in a high response rate of 94.83%. Results" indicate that perceived usefulness， perceived ease of use， and external environment have a positive impact on farmers’ willingness to adopt drone technology." Additionally， perceived" ease of use and external environment are shown to significantly affect perceived usefulness. And the external environment also has a positive impact on perceived ease of use. Meanwhile，" both" perceived usefulness and ease of use" play a mediating role" in the relationship between external factors and farmers’ adoption willingness." In addition，" individual characteristics such as education level and income" have a moderating effect on the perceived usefulness and the willingness to adopt drone technology.

Given the results described above， this article proposes" a series of policy measures to facilitate the adoption of UAV technology" in ethnic regions. These include strategies to improve the perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of UAV for farmers， improve the external" environmental conditions， and enhance the technical literacy of farmers in ethnic areas. Specific measures may" include： Increasing" policy support for the application of drones， carrying out" tailored" technical training and promotion activities among farmers， simplifying and localizing drone operations， enhancing the ease of using drones， and establishing sound infrastructure and service networks that support drone applications. Such measures are considered crucial for increasing farmers’ engagement with this new quality technology and contributing to the broader goal of rural revitalization.

Key Words： ethnic regions; New Quality Productivity; UAV; adoption willingness; influencing factors