Does risk management affect productivity of organic rice farmers in India? Evidence from a semiparametric production model
研究利用印度有机巴斯马蒂稻农数据，通过半参数平滑系数生产函数分析风险态度、风险感知和风险管理技能对生产率的直接与间接影响，发现高风险厌恶者生产率较低，而担忧生产风险的农户生产率较高。
This study analyzes the effects of farmers’ risk on productivity where the production function is generalized to be specific to risk variables. This resulted in a semiparametric smooth-coefficient (SPSC) production function. The novelty of the SPSC approach is that it can explain the direct and indirect channels through which risk can affect productivity. The study uses several measures of risk, including attitudes toward risk, perceptions of risk, and risk management skills of farmers. It then shows how these risk-related variables affect productivity both directly and indirectly via the inputs. Using 2015 farm-level data from organic basmati rice (OBR) smallholders in India, the study finds that OBR farmers with high degrees of risk aversion had lower productivity than less risk-averse or risk-neutral OBR farmers. Additionally, OBR farmers who were most concerned about production risks (i.e., weather and pest risks) had higher productivity than their counterparts. Finally, the study reveals that OBR farmers can reduce production costs by increasing farm size.