1. Cultural narratives, social norms, and psychological stigma : a study of mental health help-seeking behavior in Peshawar, PakistanDaraz Umar, Štefan Bojnec, Younas Khan, Zakir Hussain, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Introduction: Mental health stigma remains a major barrier to accessing psychiatric care worldwide, with pronounced effects in culturally traditional societies such as Peshawar, Pakistan. In the Pashtun cultural context, the code of Pashtunwali—an honor-based system—shapes social attitudes and behaviors, potentially influencing mental health help-seeking patterns. This study examines how cultural narratives, social norms, and stigma interact to affect help-seeking behavior in this sociocultural setting. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among a stratified random sample of 400 adults aged 19 years and above in Peshawar. Data were collected using culturally validated instruments, including the Mental Illness Stigma Scale (MISS) and a Social Norms Scale. Bivariate analyses employed simple linear regression and binary logistic regression to examine individual relationships between variables. Multivariate analyses, including multiple linear regression and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), were used to assess combined effects and mediation pathways. Results: Cultural narratives had a positive impact on help-seeking behavior, explaining 42% of its variance. Stigma showed a significant negative association, decreasing help-seeking likelihood by 26% for each unit increase. Social norms demonstrated a positive association with help-seeking behavior and indirectly reduced stigma. Collectively, these variables accounted for 68% of the variance in help-seeking likelihood. Discussion: The findings highlight the pivotal role of culturally resonant narratives and supportive social norms rooted in Pashtunwali in improving mental health service utilization. Addressing stigma while reinforcing positive cultural frameworks can substantially enhance help-seeking behavior in Peshawar and similar sociocultural contexts.
Keywords: cultural narratives, mental health stigma, social norms, psychiatric help, structural equation modeling (SEM)
Published in RUP: 28.08.2025; Views: 670; Downloads: 7
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2. Exploring the drivers of farm sustained participation in agri‑environmental programmesŠtefan Bojnec, Imre Fertő, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: This paper examines the socioeconomic and institutional determinants influencing sustained participation in Agri-Environmental Climate Schemes (AECS), drawing on comprehensive panel data from Slovenian farms covering the period 2014–2021. Using discrete-time hazard models and nonparametric duration analysis, we identify economic resilience—characterised by larger farm size, income diversification, and prior participation—as a significant driver of prolonged AECS engagement. Conversely, greater dependence on market-based income is negatively correlated with long-term participation, highlighting inherent trade-offs between short-term economic gains and sustained ecological commitments. Additionally, educational attainment exhibits a modest yet positive association, emphasising the importance of knowledge dissemination and capacity building in facilitating the responsible use and sustained environmental protection. Our findings underscore the necessity for context-specific policy designs, advocating diversified financial incentives, robust extension services, and market-aligned strategies to effectively integrate agricultural productivity with environmental sustainability.
Keywords: agri-environmental climate scheme management, farm corporate social responsibility, sustainable farm production adoption, selection model, duration analysis, discrete-time models
Published in RUP: 28.08.2025; Views: 470; Downloads: 7
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3. Assessing the economic effects of agri-environmental schemes on farm input useImre Fertő, Štefan Bojnec, 2025, published scientific conference contribution abstract (invited lecture) Abstract: . This study assesses the economic impacts of agri-environmental schemes (AES) on farm-level input expenditures, particularly fertilizers, crop protection products, and energy, in Hungary from 2014 to 2020. Employing advanced econometric methodologies, including Synthetic Difference-inDifferences (SDID), Synthetic Control (SC), and traditional Difference-in-Differences (DiD), the analysis addresses the complex challenges posed by staggered AES adoption and significant farm-level heterogeneity. The findings indicate no statistically significant overall change in expenditures for fertilizers, crop protection, and energy. Nonetheless, detailed temporal analysis reveals nuanced dynamics. During the initial phases of AES implementation, transitional inefficiencies are evident, indicating adaptation challenges and associated costs as farmers adjust to new environmental requirements. These initial costs stem from administrative burdens, the need for training, and investments in sustainable practices such as precision agriculture and integrated pest management (IPM). Over subsequent years, the results exhibit stabilization or slight increases in input expenditures rather than substantial cost savings. Such trends suggest that while AES may encourage environmentally sustainable farming practices, the expected economic benefits from reduced inputs—due to input substitution or increased efficiency—may not be immediate or uniformly achievable. Indeed, more precise and environmentally-friendly alternatives to traditional chemical inputs, despite their ecological advantages, can incur higher short-term costs. Further analysis highlights considerable heterogeneity in AES impacts across different farm sizes and adoption timing. Larger, more technologically advanced farms display a relatively smaller incremental cost increase, benefiting from economies of scale and superior resource access, yet these differences are minor and statistically inconclusive. Early adopters, defined as farms participating in AES from the scheme’s initial stages, showed no systematic economic advantage or disadvantage compared to later adopters, indicating a consistent adaptation pattern across all participating farms. Robustness checks, including random treatment falsification tests and analyses on never-treated farms, reinforce the credibility of the findings, affirming that observed AES impacts genuinely reflect causal relationships rather than selection biases or confounding factors. The study concludes that the complex interplay between policy design, farm structure, market dynamics, and adaptation processes can obscure immediate economic outcomes. Therefore, it underscores the need for more tailored AES interventions that consider farm-specific constraints, transitional costs, and longterm adaptation dynamics. Additionally, integrating broader sustainability indicators—biodiversity, soil quality, and resilience metrics—could yield a more comprehensive evaluation of AES efficacy. This research contributes important empirical evidence to ongoing discussions regarding the economic viability and environmental effectiveness of AES within diverse agricultural landscapes. Policymakers are encouraged to account for initial adaptation phases, support targeted technological and management innovations, and embrace regionally customized strategies to optimize both ecological and economic outcomes of AES policies.
Keywords: agri-environmental schemes, input expenditures, synthetic difference-in-differences, policy evaluation
Published in RUP: 18.08.2025; Views: 443; Downloads: 3
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4. Agri-environmental schemes and input costsŠtefan Bojnec, Imre Fertő, 2025, published scientific conference contribution abstract (invited lecture) Abstract: Agri-environmental schemes (AECS) are integral components of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy, designed to promote environmentally sustainable farming practices and mitigate the adverse impacts of agriculture on ecosystems by providing financial incentives to farmers (Unay-Gailhard and Bojnec, 2016; Ait Sidhoum, Canessa, and Sauer, 2023). This study analyses the impact of AES participation on variable input costs for energy consumption, fertilizer use, and crop protection in Slovenia. Findings indicate that AES participation significantly reduces fertilizer, pesticide, and energy costs. While AES lower input costs, they may also lead to short-term yield reductions, potentially affecting farm profitability and farm efficiency (Baráth, Fertő, and Bojnec, 2020). These results highlight the need for complementary policies that enhance sustainable yield improvements and farm resilience. By promoting resource-efficient practices, AES contributes to reducing environmental externalities such as soil and water pollution and improving population wellbeing (Fukuyama, Hashimoto and Weber, 2020). The study underscores AES as essential for the transition to sustainable agriculture while emphasizing the challenge of balancing environmental, economic, and other sustainability objectives (Fertő and Bojnec, 2024, 2025). Policymakers should consider strategies that support both ecological benefits and farm income stability, ensuring long-term agricultural sustainability and resilience in the face of environmental and economic challenges.
Keywords: agri-environmental schemes, costs, energy, fertilizer, crop protection, Slovenia
Published in RUP: 18.08.2025; Views: 452; Downloads: 3
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5. Gender equality barriers in agriculture and life sciences in Central european universitiesVeronika Paksi, Katalin Tardos, Judit Takács, Csilla Judit Suhajda, Jana Mazancová, Štefan Bojnec, Julianna Kobolák, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: The European Union aims to foster research excellence, among others, by increasing gender equality (GE) in the European research area. The mandatory introduction of gender equality plans (GEP) mobilised universities to assess, target, and monitor GE in different fields of science. A wide range of barriers have been explored in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), characterised by the low participation of women. However, significant obstacles to GE can emerge in relatively more gender‐balanced and, therefore, rarely studied fields, such as agriculture and life sciences (ALS). Experiences can differ in Central and Eastern European countries, characterised by rather traditional gender and family norms. This study explores different stakeholders’ perceptions of the main barriers of GE, with particular attention to ALS. We conducted nine focus groups (82 participants in total) with middle management, academic staff, and students from Czech, Hungarian, and Slovenian universities, aiming to contribute to the revision of their first GEP. Discussions were centred on recruitment, leadership positions, work–life balance, gender‐based violence, sexual harassment, organisational culture, integrating the gender dimension into research and teaching, and institutionalisation of GEPs. Findings revealed that women in ALS face partly similar gender‐based obstacles to their counterparts in less gender‐balanced fields—perceptions of education and career choices, work–life imbalance, and exclusion by recruitment and promotion practices—and also additional ALS‐related challenges of laboratory and fieldwork. Findings highlight the need for institutions to carefully address these areas in their state‐of‐the‐art assessments and develop sector‐specific, tailor‐made GEPs.
Keywords: academia and higher education, agriculture and life sciences, barriers, Central and Eastern Europe, gender equality, gender equality plans, inclusion of women, stakeholders
Published in RUP: 18.08.2025; Views: 416; Downloads: 8
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