Psychosocial adaptation as a coping strategy among older farmers facing drought in Thailand

Population ageing within the agricultural workforce renders drought adaptation among older farmers an urgent yet underexamined dimension of climate resilience. This study examines how farmers aged 60–69 in drought-prone communities of Buriram Province, Thailand, perceive and respond to drought risk, drawing on social–psychological theories of behavior and decision-making. Using stratified group discussions with older farmers who have more than a decade of farming experience, the analysis indicates that drought adaptation is shaped by the complex interaction of behavioral beliefs, social norms, perceived self-efficacy, and cost–benefit appraisals. Older farmers’ responses are mediated by peer-influenced cognitive processes, including observation, imitation, comparison, and self-regulation, as well as by community norms that reinforce social pressure to maintain traditional farming identities. At the same time, they also apply their own evaluative frameworks to weigh immediate climate threats against the physical and financial costs of altering long-standing practices. This experience-based appraisal determines whether a self-protective strategy is perceived as feasible or too costly within the constraints of their life stage and available resources. Strengthening peer-based knowledge exchange and community-led extension mechanisms tailored to ageing farmers is therefore recommended to align adaptive interventions with these cognitive and social dynamics.