Agricultural land use change in fertile areas (basic agriculture) in Southwestern Iran: lessons learned from a qualitative study

Yazdanpanah, M., Mousavi, M., Sharifi, Z., Lamm, A., Löhr, K., & Sieber, S. (2025). Agricultural land use change in fertile areas (basic agriculture) in Southwestern Iran: lessons learned from a qualitative study. Environment, Development and Sustainability 10.1007/s10668-025-06800-5.

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Abstract

The growing population has led to the conversion of productive agricultural lands into non-agricultural uses. These widespread changes in land use are reducing agricultural production and threatening food security. Therefore, it is essential to preserve agricultural lands; the first step of which is to gain a thorough understanding of the issue. Accordingly, this study aimed to investigate the causes of changing agricultural land use in the fertile areas of southwestern Iran. Utilizing a qualitative grounded theory approach, the statistical population was farmers in Bavi County selected through snowball sampling. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 34 participants until theoretical saturation was reached. Data were analyzed using three coding stages, namely open, axial, and selective coding. The results of the open coding stage revealed 69 key concepts. During the axial coding stage, these concepts were classified into eight subcategories, including biophysical characteristics of the land, economic factors, legal factors, social factors, improvement and promotion of cultural and welfare issues, the weakness of the monitoring system, physical space development factors, and the change of weather conditions. Ultimately, in the selective coding stage, a paradigm model was developed to depict the causes of land use change in agriculture, including the main phenomenon, contextual conditions, causal conditions, intervening conditions, strategies, and consequences. These findings can smooth the way for a comprehensive understanding of the issue to address it. Accordingly, supporting farmers financially by providing low-cost or subsided inputs and services could make a huge contribution to preventing the conversion of agricultural land use.

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