Tropentag, September 10 - 12, 2025, Bonn "Reconciling land system changes with planetary health"

"scroll or sow? evaluating online social networks as social learning tools for iranian farmers using the ecm model"

¹Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Khadijeh Soleimani, Iran
²University of Khuzestan, Dept. of Agricultural Extension and Education, Iran
³Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Iran
⁴Germany & Division Urban Plant Ecophysiology, Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany
⁵Leibniz Centre for Agric. Landscape Res. (ZALF), Sustainable Land Use in Developing Countries (SusLAND), Germany
⁶Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Iran

Abstract

Today, farmers are the beating heart of societies, whose life and food security are on the one hand, and on the other hand, their participation in controlling and dealing with the biggest global crises, such as climate change, drought, energy shortages, etc., in ensuring the survival and sustainability of societies is obvious and undeniable. The role of social learning not only in the learning process of farmers and facilitating their acceptance, but also in helping them participate in dealing with natural crises has been confirmed and revealed. The high ability of online social networks in facilitating the social learning process is one of the unique features of these new technologies, and their remarkable and rapid acceptance is an indication of the performance and popularity of these media, although their acceptance by farmers as a social learning tool is not yet at an acceptable level. Therefore, it has caused doubts about whether these networks are opportunities or threats in reality and are these networks Scroll or Sow? Therefore, this study, by measuring the satisfaction of farmers who have been users of social networks as an educational tool in Khuzestan province, located in southern Iran, has attempted to examine the factors affecting satisfaction and intention to continue using these networks using one of the powerful acceptance models ECM (Expectation Confirmation Model). Data were collected by a questionnaire and analysed by using structural equations model (SEM) in PLSv3 software. The results of the study showed that the confirmation had positive effect on perceived usefulness and satisfaction, and satisfaction had positive effect on the continuance intantion to use the network, while the perceived usefulness of the network had no effect on the satisfaction of farmers. Confirmation directly explained 74% of the satisfaction variable, and indirectly with the satisfaction variable, explained 60% of the continuance intantion. Based on the results specific strategies are suggested to improving farmers' attitudes toward using online social networks for educational and knowledge exchange purposes: increasing awareness of OSNs benefits, training and support, customisation of content, user experience optimisation, community building.

Keywords: ECM model, farmers, online social media, Social learning

Contact Address: Khadijeh Soleimani, Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Khadijeh Soleimani, Khuzestan, 33333333 Mollasani, Iran, e-mail: khadijeh.soleimanigmail.com