Direct and indirect effects of zoonosis intervention on pro-environmental behaviors among livestock farmers.

作者：Sen Wang, Yue Wang, Yaling Cao, Quanzhen Cai, Jing Li, Yumei Liu · 发表于：Preventive Veterinary Medicine · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1016/j.prevetmed.2026.106793 · 研究领域：Medicine

The occurrence of zoonotic diseases on livestock farms, especially infectious diseases such as echinococcosis, poses a severe threat to surrounding ecosystems and the health of nearby residents. It is crucial to take proper measures to increase farmers' knowledge, awareness and practices regarding zoonoses. Cognitive interventions are widely used in the control of epidemics. Using Chinese livestock farming as a case study, this study examined the effect of cognitive intervention (i.e., training and dissemination) on farmers' pro-environmental behaviors, with the key dependent variable including both zoonosis-prevention behaviors (e.g., dog deworming and lamb vaccination) and daily management behaviors (e.g., household waste and sewage handling). Based on survey data collected from 496 livestock farmers over four years in Qinghai province, China, the study employed a two-way fixed-effects regression model to explore both the direct and indirect effects of zoonotic cognitive intervention on farmers' pro-environmental behaviors, and also explored the mediating effects of zoonotic knowledge and perceptions of environment. The findings reveal that: (1) Zoonotic cognitive interventions significantly improved farmers' behaviors in preventing and controlling zoonotic diseases. (2) The interventions generated positive indirect effects on other pro-environmental behaviors, particularly proper disposal of livestock waste and household garbage. (3) Increased knowledge on zoonosis, as wel...