The Effect of Farming Risk Perception and Mitigation Strategies on Rice Farming Performance in Tebas District

Abstract

Background: Rice farming in Tebas District faces various risks, such as drought, pest/disease attacks (blasts and fungal diseases), and price fluctuations that threaten farmers' productivity and income. Therefore, mitigation strategies are implemented to overcome these risks. However, the performance of farming, such as productivity, still fluctuates.
Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the influence of farming risk perception and mitigation strategies on rice farming performance in Tebas District.
Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected through interviews and questionnaires from September to October 2025, involving 91 respondents. The data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS 3.0 software. The variables studied included risk perception (X1), benefits of mitigation strategies (X2), and farming performance (Y).
Findings/Results: The results show that risk perception encourages farmers to implement risk mitigation strategies. However, risk perception does not directly improve farming performance. In contrast, risk mitigation strategies have proven to play an important role in increasing the productivity and efficiency of rice farming. These findings show that improvements in farming performance are more influenced by mitigation actions taken by farmers than by the perception of risk itself.
Conclusion: The performance of rice farming in Tebas District is determined more by the implementation of effective mitigation strategies than by the perception of farmers' risks. Mitigation strategies act as full mediation variables that transform risk awareness into actual performance improvements. This study contributes to enriching the study of agricultural risk management by showing that the improvement of farming performance does not occur directly through risk perception, but through the application of adaptive mitigation strategies.
Originality/value (State of the art): This study confirms the mediating role of mitigation strategies using the SEM-PLS approach in the context of rice farming on risk-prone rainfed land. In practical terms, these findings imply that extension programs not only build risk awareness but also equip farmers with technical skills to implement adaptive mitigation strategies.  

Keywords: risk perception, mitigation strategy, farming performance, sem-pls, rice