Analysis of the Causes of Agricultural Land Use Change from the Perspective of Experts in Agricultural Centers of Dashtestan County

Every year, some of the best agricultural lands in the country are changed for various reasons and converted into non-agricultural uses, and the departure of such lands from the field of agricultural and horticultural production causes irreparable damage. In this regard, the present study was conducted qualitatively, using the fundamental theory method with the aim of investigating the causes of land use change in Dashtestan City of Bushehr province. Participants in this study were 16 experts from agricultural centers in the city who were selected for the study through targeted snowball sampling (chain reference). The criterion for the number of samples was theoretical saturation. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. Finally, the collected data were coded and analyzed in the form of 55 concepts and 18 categories. Finally, the extracted factors based on their nature in 8 mechanisms (economic (13 factors), social (7 factors), environmental (9 factors), welfare (8 factors), legal (7 factors), human (4), supportive (2 factors) and psychological (5 factors) were placed in the model of Strauss and Corbin.