Environmental awareness among small coffee growers in producing municipalities of southern Colombia
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5820-0505
This research analyzes the structure and factors associated with environmental awareness among small coffee growers in southern Huila, Colombia, using a structural equation model oriented to distinguish internal dimensions of awareness, its behavioral expression, and institutional support. Environmental awareness was conceived as a multidimensional construct that integrates environmental knowledge, sensitivity and concern, risk perception, responsibility, and willingness to change; environmental practices were incorporated as the behavioral expression of that awareness, while institutional support was considered a contextual enabling condition. A 34-item Likert scale instrument was applied to 600 producers from nine municipalities, and the data were analyzed using reliability, convergent and discriminant validity, and structural equation modeling. Results show high levels in cognitive, affective, risk, and responsibility dimensions (M > 4.0), but lower levels in willingness to change (M = 3.425), institutional support (M = 3.051), and environmental practices (M = 3.108). Institutional support had direct effects on knowledge (β = .485) and practices (β = .413), while willingness to change was the strongest direct predictor of practices (β = .490). The explained variance for practices reached R² = .560. The study contributes to management, sustainability, and territorial development by providing an empirical model to segment institutional interventions by municipality and awareness profile.
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