田作物 選擇을 통해서 본 산지 주민의 環境 適應行態 硏究 - 嶺西地方의 五臺山 일대를 중심으로 -

Abstract

Recent research on human adaptability focuses functional and structural features of human populations that facilitate their coping with environmental change and stressful conditions.

The objective of this research is to examine the adaptive strategy of farmers to the marketing condition and mountain environment. The hypothesis is from the objective of research operations that profit maximization behaviour is conditioned by physical and agricultural envi ronment.

The adaptive strategy is analyzed at the three levels; at the regional, community , and individual leve 1. At the regional leve l, the dominant types of crop cultivation and their geographical patterns are investigated. The discriminant analysis is employed to identify the major factors determining the land use patterns. At the community and individual levels the study focuses on crop combination, farm size,

the lease of farm lands , and management.

The target research areas are 53 small river basins around the Ode Mountain on the westside of Taebaek Mountains. Primary data are gathered via field survey and interviews with farmers living in the basins.

The major findings of the study are as follows:

1. The cash crops as the main choice of montane farmers are potatoes and vegetables , and their distribution shows a regular spatial pattern with respect to the road system and altitude. The discriminant analysis reveals that the adoption of vegetables be highly related to the altitude , relief and the age group of farmers. Especially, the young age group is more leaning towards commercial vegetable agricul ture than the older farmers , and the factors of the physical environment such as the altitude appears to set the constrains against commercial

agricul ture.

2. In terms of the patterns of crop combination patterns , the study region can be divided into three zones: the zones of vegetable specialization, sub- specialization and non- specialization reflecting the constraints of the physical environment as well as different adaptive strategies of farmers.

3. At the communi ty and individual levels , the three agricul tural zones are differentiated in several aspects as well. The farm s i zes in the spec i al i zat i on zone are 1 arger than those of other zones. However, the 1arger farm sizes are 1arge1y due to the common practice of 1easing farm 1ands. They try to avoid a risk in terms of market price f1uctuation and sca1e economy. ln the zone of vegetab1e specia1ization zone farmers tend to a110cate virtua11y a11 of their 1ands to cu1tivate vegetab1es but of various kinds. Such a strategy of diversifying vegetab1es is to cope with severe f1uctuation of the market prices of the vegetab1es.

Whereas the combination of one vegetab1e and two or three other crops are more common in the other zones because of the a1titude costraining profit maximization behavior and diversified farming po1icy. Farmers who specia1ize in vegetab1e growing do not necessari1y earn more than those farmers in the zones of sub-specia1ization and non-specia1ization.

4. The factors of accessibi1ity, institutiona1 organization, and vicinity to specia1ization zone exert additiona1 forces to influence adaptive behaviour of the Taebaek Mountain farmers. The study resu1 ts conform the research hypothesis. Mountain agricu1ture zonation is expected to have spatia1 arrangements in future.