Abstract
Introduction
Upon examining the documents, reports, and plans related to exploitation systems, it becomes evident that the concept of exploitation systems, agricultural land ownership arrangements, and their implications extend to complex issues in development economics and approaches to social transformation, encompassing historical perspectives. The complexity of exploitation systems is attributed to internal factors, highlighting the multifaceted nature of their structure. The sustainability of agricultural exploitation systems in Iran is analyzed through economic, social, and environmental dimensions. This research aims to assess the sustainability of exploitation systems in the villages of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari provinces.
Materials and Methods
This quantitative research is applied in nature and employs survey methods to collect descriptive data through interviews and questionnaires.the diversity of the population, the sample size for the study using Cochran's formula was a total of 750 operators. To compare two farming systems, the sample size was determined to be 380 smallholder farmers and 370 cooperative producers. The main research tool was a researcher-made questionnaire, and its data was analyzed using the VIKOR model. A structured questionnaire with open and closed questions was used to gather information on personal details of respondents and dimensions of economic, social, and environmental sustainability indicators. The questionnaire utilized a 5-point Likert scale for responses. The statistical population comprises farmers in the villages of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, including small farmers and rural production cooperatives.
Results and Discussion
The sustainability of exploitation systems was evaluated based on the QI value, with lower values indicating higher desirability. The Vicor model results revealed that among 21 rural production cooperatives, 7 had high stability, 10 exhibited moderate stability, and 4 were unstable. In small farming exploitation systems, 2 villages were stable, 8 were moderately stable, and 11 were unstable. Systems with QI values closer to zero demonstrated better stability, while values approaching one indicated decreased stability.
Conclusions
The research focused on measuring the sustainability of smallholder exploitation systems and rural production cooperatives in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, emphasizing economic, social, and environmental indicators. The Shannon entropy method was used to weigh the indicators, and the Vicor model analysis indicated varying levels of stability among cooperatives and villages. Seven cooperatives were deemed sustainable, 10 semi-stable, and 4 unstable. Similarly, in small farming systems, some villages were semi-sustainable while others were completely unstable.