Abstract
The efficient and orderly realisation of the value of grassland ecological products is the key to achieving the strategic goal of transforming ‘green mountains’ into ‘golden mountains’. The behaviour of herders, as the direct promoters of the realisation of the value of grassland ecological products, is crucial to achieving this goal. Therefore, it is of great significance to carry out research on the behaviour of micro-entrepreneurs in order to accelerate the cracking of the problem between the shortage of ecological products and the constraints of natural resources, and to promote balanced development. Based on the eco-ethical perspective, the contradictory factors and research frameworks affecting the behaviours of grassland eco-products value realisation were extracted from five aspects: natural relationship cognition, grassland ecological function cognition, grassland ecological statute awareness, pro-environmental attitudes, and knowledge of grassland ecological husbandry. A mixed method of structural equation modelling (SEM) and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was used to explore the influencing mechanisms and antecedent configurations of the behaviours of value realization of grassland ecological products in China. The results showed that natural relationship cognition, grassland ecological function cognition, grassland ecological statute awareness, pro-environmental attitude and grassland ecological animal husbandry knowledge all significantly influenced the intention and behaviour of grassland ecological product value realisation. And the intention to realise the value of grassland ecological products played a partial mediating effect between the ecological ethical view and the behaviour of realising the value of grassland ecological products. Secondly, policy support played a positive moderating role in the intention and behaviour of grassland ecological product value realization. Finally, six nested configuration pathways leading to the behaviour of value realisation of grassland ecological products have been identified.
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Funding
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41961046); the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Major Science and Technology Project (Grant No. 2023A02002-6-3 and 2022A02013-4) and Research Training Programme for High-Level Talent at Xinjiang Agricultural University (Grant No. 2525GCCRC/6660800).
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Li, J., Yao, J., Hu, J. et al. Study on the multi-dimensional paths of ecological ethics influencing the realisation of the value of herders’ grassland ecological products.
Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-58943-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-58943-8
Keywords
- Value realisation of grassland ecological products
- Ecological ethics
- Behavioural choices
- Structural equation modelling
- Fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis
Source: Ecology - nature.com
