Investigation of Stakeholders’ Attitudes Towards Water Saving Management in Wet and Semi-arid Regions: A Case of Kohgilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province

Water shortage has become a global crisis since the past few decades. Therefore, using water for domestic purposes judiciously and fairly has become an essential part of a sensible water policy worldwide. Iran is squandering thrice the global average in water loss. This challenge is particularly serious in Kohgilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province. From a theoretical perspective, the proposal that people's domestic water use is associated with their conservative attitude is supported by literature that states that the magnitude of people's behavior patterns can influence the degree to which they act on those habits. Research has also established that many factors, such as religious values, concern for the environment, knowledge of environmental issues, as well as educational level, size of household, income, and gender of householders, and where they live, can critically influence their attitude towards the environment. Several studies from a range of areas, such as economics, have examined the probable influence of preserving actions targeted toward water utilization. Considering the vital role of water users in water wastage management, this survey study has investigated factors affecting attitude of beneficiaries toward saving domestic water among the rural households in Kohgilouyeh and BoyerAhmad province.

Survey study was the main approach and the methodology used in this study to identify basic information about the pattern of domestic water use in rural households includes: household composition, educational level, sources of income/livelihood, level of income, monthly water use, including indoor and outdoor water use, and sanitation in two different regions of high- and low- level of water in Kohgilouyeh and Boyer Ahmad province. The study population was consisted of rural household heads in this province. Stratified multi-stage random sampling was used to collect data from 282 households of areas with low- and- high level of water. Structural questionnaires were used to collect data. The questionnaires' validity was confirmed by panel of experts and a pilot study was done to assess the reliability. Cronbach's alpha coefficients were equal to 0.62-0.92 for different measures. The final set of explanatory variables controls for the influence of climatic conditions on water conservation attitudes. Climate-related data were obtained from Meteorological and Regional Water Organizations of Kohgilouyeh and Boyer Ahmad province. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS 21) was used to treat and analyze the obtained data.

Analytical results revealed that rural residents of water-rich and waterpoor areas were significantly different with respect to their religious beliefs, perception of saving equipment and social norms. In spite of the fact that intergenerational justice, social norms, awareness towards water crisis, institutional trust and responsibility were the most important predictors of households’ conservative attitude in water-poor areas, religious beliefs, social trust and responsibility could explain 44% of variation in householders’ conservative attitude in water-rich rural areas. Hierarchical regression results also indicated that domestic water use in water-rich regions was positively related to users’ religious beliefs and their accountability. This is while the relation between social trust and water use was negative. Similar results were obtained for the water-poor areas regarding the positive relation between intergenerational justice, social norms, awareness towards water crisis, and accountability. This is while the relation between institutional trust and conservative attitude was negative.

This study sought to analyze the social, psychological, attitudes and behaviors related to household water preservation. Three aspects were targeted in the study: a) complexity of behavior, meaning better understanding of environmental awareness, targeting behavior for improvement, b) behavior patterns: Examining people’s water consumption and saving behaviors, and c) social norms: A close look at people's social backgrounds and their attitudes towards the subject. Results of the research supported that to a significant extent, an individual's behavior is determined by the surrounding social environment as well as social norms. It is possible to promote preservation of water by instilling values into society.