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Scientia Silvae Sinicae ›› 2025, Vol. 61 ›› Issue (8): 204-218.doi: 10.11707/j.1001-7488.LYKX20240421

• Research papers • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Impact of Forest Property Rights Security on Rural Households’ Inputs in Non-Timber Forest Management

Fangting Xie1,2,Jianling Shi2,Zhen Zhu1,2,Yueqin Shen1,2,*()   

  1. 1. Rural Revitalization Academy of Zhejiang Province/Green Rural Revival Program Academy, Zhejiang A & F University Hangzhou 311300
    2. College of Economics and Management, Zhejiang A & F University Hangzhou 311300
  • Received:2024-07-08 Online:2025-08-25 Published:2025-09-02
  • Contact: Yueqin Shen E-mail:shenyueqin@zafu.edu.cn

Abstract:

Objective: This study quantitatively analyzes the impacts and mechanisms of various aspects of property rights security on rural households’ motivations to manage non-timber forest. The findings aim to provide decision-making insights for advancing reform of the collective forest rights system. Method: This research conducted a sample survey of 582 households in the collective forest areas of Zhejiang and Jiangxi. By applying the entropy method and Tobit model, we empirically estimated the effect of property rights security on households' investments in non-timber forest management. Furthermore, a mediating effect model of perceived property rights security was constructed to examine its role in mediating the effects of legal and factual property rights security on these investments. Result: 1) Both legal and factual property rights security significantly promoted labor inputs and cash inputs by farmers. 2) Perceived property rights security partially mediated the impact of legal property rights security on the labor and cash inputs in non-timber forest management, with mediation effects of 36.5% and 49.1%, respectively. Similarly, perceived property rights security also had a partial mediating effect on the impact of factual property rights security on labor and cash inputs, with mediation strengths of 24.9% and 26.1%, respectively. 3) The impact of property rights security varies among farmers with different forest sizes and income levels; those with smaller forest areas and lower forestry income levels are more vulnerable to property rights insecurity. Conclusion: To deepen the reform of the collective forest rights system, it is necessary not only to strengthen policy implementation at both legal and factual levels, but also to correctly guide the perceptions of farmers, effectively transforming policy effects into the subjective cognition of farmers, thereby enhancing their enthusiasm for managing non-timber forest products.

Key words: collective forest rights system reform, property rights security, non-timber forest product, labor input, cash investment

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