How to Promote Sustainable Bamboo Forest Management: An Empirical Study from Small-Scale Farmers in China

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Reviewer’s comments:

I have some comments on your work titled “How to promote sustainable bamboo forest management: an empirical study from small-scale farmers in China”. The paper topic is interesting and the work has a potential to contribute to forest management and sustainability. However, some parts of the paper are still weak, so author(s) should take the following point into consideration to improve the work.

Specifice comments:

1. Please further elaborate the conceptual framework and please cite appropriate references for some sentences covering the theories used.

2. Please provide a map of study area.

3. The discussion part is still weak, please consider using the mindsponge theory, the SM3D knowledge management system and mindspongeconomics to deeply explain the decision-making mechanism of small-scale farmers’ reinvestment in bamboo forest management. It is noted that information and core values are two points on which author(s) should focus on.

4. There are some key references that author(s) may consider using for your revising:

·        Vuong, Q. H. (2022). Mindsponge theory. https://books.google.com.vn/books?id=OSiGEAAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y.

·        Khuc, V. Q. (2022). Mindspongeconomics. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4453917

Comments on the Quality of English Language

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Author Response

We are gratefully to the reviewer for your review of our paper. All your suggestions are very important to us. The detailed responses to all the issues raised by the reviewer are listed below, and all of your suggestions have been addressed in the revised manuscript (highlighted).

1. Please further elaborate the conceptual framework and please cite appropriate references for some sentences covering the theories used.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the relevant content.

2. Please provide a map of study area.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have incorporated study area diagrams into the original text.

3. The discussion part is still weak, please consider using the mindsponge theory, the SM3D knowledge management system and mindspongeconomics to deeply explain the decision-making mechanism of small-scale farmers’ reinvestment in bamboo forest management. It is noted that information and core values are two points on which author(s) should focus on.

There are some key references that author(s) may consider using for your revising:

• Vuong, Q. H. (2022). Mindsponge theory. https://books.google.com.vn/books?id=OSiGEAAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y.
• Khuc, V. Q. (2022). Mindspongeconomics. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4453917

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments.

• There are many factors that can influence human decision-making, ranging from internal to external factors. Therefore, it is challenging to encompass all these factors within one model. In this paper, we prefer using variables that are easy for policymakers to understand and regulate, such as government support. Policymakers can adjust the quantity of bamboo plantation by altering the level of support. Since personal values (such as Environmental values etc.) are difficult for policymakers to change, incorporating variables related to personal values would pose difficulties for policymakers using this theory. Hence, we did not include variables related to personal values in our discussion.
• I would like to politely ask for more information on how the concept of Mindspongeconomics can be applied. I have been trying to gather information, but I still have some doubts and questions regarding its practical implementation. For example, in the middle part of information processing, how does the 3D information processing filter work? This theory seems complex and involves neuroeconomics. It goes beyond the scope that can be covered by a questionnaire survey.

 

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The manuscript deals with an interesting area of bamboo forest management and policymaking in China, and thank you for the good work done by the Chinese authors. However, the authors have some scope to improve the manuscript, and my comments are as follows:

1. In the abstract, the objective of the study is to examine two broad areas of bamboo forest management, i.e., current policy and market context. However, the results do not show any findings on a market aspect. The study will need a general recommendation based on the study’s results. Need to improve the abstract.
2. The keyword must be short; change the second keyword. Page 3, lines 110 to 117 are not necessary in the paper; it’s part of the report, thesis, etc.
3. I recommend the sub-title “Conceptual and Theoretical Framework” instead of conceptual framework on Page 3, line 118.
4. The conceptual and theoretical framework is very broad and needs to be precise as per the objectives of the study.
5. Table 2, the demographic variables of the respondent should be placed at the beginning of the result instead of the methodology section.
6. The results of the study solely emphasize the modeling data; however, I recommend adding some qualitative information so as to describe the farmers willingness to manage bamboo forests and their market aspects.
7. Figure 2 is complex and not meaningful; it would be better to drop or present the data in tabular format.
8. Even though the aim of the study presented in the conclusion section differs from the abstract or introduction objective, please avoid confusing the readers.
9. Finally, is there any negative aspect to bamboo forest management in China? I mean, in Japan, bamboo is often treated as a forest weed and creates severe problems for managing the forests for the communities as well.

 

Good luck

Author Response

We are gratefully to the reviewer for your review of our paper. All your suggestions are very important to us. The detailed responses to all the issues raised by the reviewer are listed below, and all of your suggestions have been addressed in the revised manuscript (highlighted).

1. In the abstract, the objective of the study is to examine two broad areas of bamboo forest management, i.e., current policy and market context. However, the results do not show any findings on a market aspect. The study will need a general recommendation based on the study’s results. Need to improve the abstract.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. In our study, we take ecological certification as a reflection of market demand. The purpose of promoting ecological certification is to enable bamboo to be sold in some countries that require certification, so as to expand the bamboo sales market. Therefore, the market factor considered in our study is the impact of international bamboo demand on the bamboo forest management of Chinese small-scale farmers.

2. The keyword must be short; change the second keyword. Page 3, lines 110 to 117 are not necessary in the paper; it’s part of the report, thesis, etc.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the second keyword. The original section from 110-117 has been removed.

3. I recommend the sub-title “Conceptual and Theoretical Framework” instead of conceptual framework on Page 3, line 118.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the relevant content.

4. The conceptual and theoretical framework is very broad and needs to be precise as per the objectives of the study.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have refined the expression of the theoretical framework. These variables are summed up in many field investigations, the factors that have a high impact on bamboo forest management.

5. Table 2, the demographic variables of the respondent should be placed at the beginning of the result instead of the methodology section.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the relevant content.

6. The results of the study solely emphasize the modeling data; however, I recommend adding some qualitative information so as to describe the farmers willingness to manage bamboo forests and their market aspects.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have added section 5.6 to discuss reinvestment willingness and market influence.

7. Figure 2 is complex and not meaningful; it would be better to drop or present the data in tabular format.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. After careful consideration, we have decided to retain the original figure 2 as the overall presentation of the final results of the model.

8. Even though the aim of the study presented in the conclusion section differs from the abstract or introduction objective, please avoid confusing the readers.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the relevant content（606）.

9. Finally, is there any negative aspect to bamboo forest management in China? I mean, in Japan, bamboo is often treated as a forest weed and creates severe problems for managing the forests for the communities as well.

R:

This is a very interesting question. From a biological perspective, bamboo forests have strong expansion speed and regenerative capacity. If there are other tree species near the bamboo forest, the expansion of the bamboo forest may lead to the death of other tree species after a period of time. This aspect is both a disadvantage and an advantage of bamboo forests. Due to their regenerative capacity, bamboo forests can produce a large amount of bamboo timber. By replacing wood with bamboo, it is possible to reduce deforestation of non-renewable natural forests, thereby better protecting forests and mitigating climate change. Of course, this poses higher requirements for the technology of bamboo utilization. In fact, the Chinese government is currently advocating for the use of bamboo as a substitute for plastic, which will be an important direction for future bamboo utilization in China. Additionally, Chinese people enjoy eating bamboo shoots (the young shoots of bamboo), as do giant pandas. In summary, in China, bamboo forests are more regarded as economic tree species rather than weeds.

 

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Dear authors,

I appreciated your work. High number of questionnaires, interesting method of processing. High trasparency of the elaboration. 

 

Note: p. 16, line 497, there is a number I could not figure out how it was obtained. 

Comments for author File: Comments.pdf

Author Response

We are gratefully to the reviewer for your review of our paper. All your suggestions are very important to us. The detailed responses to all the issues raised by the reviewer are listed below, and all of your suggestions have been addressed in the revised manuscript (highlighted).

1.  16, line 497, there is a number I could not figure out how it was obtained.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We apologize for the mistake in which we incorrectly wrote "direct effect" instead of "total effect". It has been rectified.

0.257 = 0.044/0.171

Reviewer 4 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Thank you for your research relevant to sustainability.    At the start of the paper you could expand the discussion of ecosystem services beyond carbon capture.  It would be particularly valuable if you could point to a success story – a case where a change in government support and lowered risk perception lead to greater farmer investment.  ln your surveys you do not quantify risk or government subsidies but perhaps you could point to studies or government documents that provide some numbers.  

It would be helpful to indicate when you are referring to another study in China, and when it is a study outside China.  Perhaps in some sentences you could state that ‘despite very different conditions (in Sweden, Africa …) researchers have found similar results’.  

 

I suggest changing ‘reinvestment’ to ‘investment’ everywhere – or else define the difference.  

22  indicate study was conducted in 2021.  

 

Were these lines intentionally left blank?

 

Funding:.

Institutional Review Board Statement:.

Informed Consent Statement:.

Data Availability Statement:

 

Comments on the Quality of English Language

Your paper requires moderate revisions

Author Response

We are gratefully to the reviewer for your review of our paper. All your suggestions are very important to us. The detailed responses to all the issues raised by the reviewer are listed below, and all of your suggestions have been addressed in the revised manuscript (highlighted).

1.  At the start of the paper you could expand the discussion of ecosystem services beyond carbon capture.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the relevant content（40-48）.

2.  It would be particularly valuable if you could point to a success story – a case where a change in government support and lowered risk perception lead to greater farmer investment. ln your surveys you do not quantify risk or government subsidies but perhaps you could point to studies or government documents that provide some numbers.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have provided examples from 223 to 226 to illustrate the impact of government support and risk on farmers' investments.

3.  It would be helpful to indicate when you are referring to another study in China, and when it is a study outside China. Perhaps in some sentences you could state that ‘despite very different conditions (in Sweden, Africa …) researchers have found similar results’. 

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the relevant content（477-478）.

 

4.  22 indicate study was conducted in 2021.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. We have made modifications to the relevant content.

5.  I suggest changing ‘reinvestment’ to ‘investment’ everywhere – or else define the difference.

R:

Thank you for your valuable comments. If we use the term “investment,” it may encompass two layers of meanings: (1) the willingness of small-scale farmers who are not involved in bamboo plantation management to participate, and (2) the continued participation of small-scale farmers who have already been involved in bamboo plantation management. This study only focuses on (2). To avoid ambiguity, the term “reinvestment” is more appropriate. It has been further defined in the original text(54-55).

6.  Were these lines intentionally left blank?

Funding:.

Institutional Review Board Statement:.

Informed Consent Statement:.

Data Availability Statement:

R:

It appears to be a template for a journal submission. I will fill in the remaining blanks later.

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

- Thank you for addressing some of my comments and suggestions . 

 

- Regarding your question: “I would like to politely ask for more information on how the concept of Mindspongeconomics can be applied. I have been trying to gather information, but I still have some doubts and questions regarding its practical implementation. For example, in the middle part of information processing, how does the 3D information processing filter work? This theory seems complex and involves neuroeconomics. It

goes beyond the scope that can be covered by a questionnaire survey.”

I have some notes below and I hope that you could better understand/learn about mindsponge theory and mindspongeconomics, and how to apply them into your work. 

“The mindsponge is a new theory that explains how people learn and adopt cultural values. It is based on the metaphor of a sponge, which absorbs water and then squeezes out the water that is not compatible with its structure (Vuong, 2023). Although mindsponge theory is a young one, it has been used in more than 200 scientific works so far (Aisdl, 2023).The mindsponge theory has five components: mindset, comfort zone, multi-filtering system, cultural and ideological setting, cultural values. The mindset is the individual's core set of beliefs and values. It is the foundation of the mindsponge mechanism. Next, the comfort zone is the range of values that the individual is comfortable with. Values outside of the comfort zone are seen as threatening and are more likely to be rejected. Next, the multi-filtering system is a set of cognitive processes that the individual uses to evaluate new information. The system filters out information that is not compatible with the individual's mindset and comfort zone. The cultural and ideological setting is the environment in which the individual lives. It includes the values of the family, friends, community, and society. Finally, cultural values are the values that are shared by a group of people. They are transmitted through the family, education, and other social institutions. When an individual encounters new information, the multi-filtering system evaluates the information. If the information is compatible with the individual's mindset and comfort zone, it is absorbed into the mindsponge. In contrast, if the information is not compatible with the individual's mindset and comfort zone, it is rejected or ignored. The mindsponge mechanism is constantly adapting to new information. As the individual learns and grows, the mindset and comfort zone change, and new information is absorbed.

Mindspongeconomics is a combination and expansion of the mindsponge theory and many other subjects such as behavioral economics, neuroeconomics, welfare economics, experimental economics, and sociology (Khuc, 2022). Mindspongeconomics new branch of applied economics and been widely applied in many topics/studies’s decision-making  recently, covering from healthcare, public health (Alhamad et al., 2023; Xu et al., 2023) to environmental governance, environmental economics, sustainability (Liu et al., 2023; Yao et al., 2023), land management and conservation (Susilowati et al., 2022), agriculture development (Alzahrani et al., 2023; Consentino et al., 2023), energy transition and urban development (Khuc et al., 2023). It argues that individuals make economic decisions based on their core values, which are filtered through their mindset and comfort zone. It also argues that individuals are influenced by the cultural and ideological setting in which they live. For business decisions, mindspongeconomics can be used to understand how businesses make decisions about pricing, marketing, and product development. For example, a business that is trying to appeal to a younger audience may use social media marketing because it is a platform that is popular with young people. For government policy, mindspongeconomics can be used to understand how government policies affect people's behavior. For example, a government policy that raises taxes on cigarettes may discourage people from smoking. Mindsponge and mindspongeconomic are two interconnected theories that help understand how people's minds work and therefore why they make the decisions they do”.

 

There are some key references that you could consider reading and learning how to use/apply mindsponge theory and mindspongeocnomics.

I highly suggest that you should particularly read the reference #3: (Alzahrani, K., Ali, M., Azeem, M.I., Alotaibi, B.A., 2023. Efficacy of Public Extension and Advisory Services for Sustainable Rice Production. Agric. 13. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13051062). 

 

1.     Aisdl, 2023. Applications and developments of BMF analytics / MT over time. OSF Prepr. https://doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/gr3jt

2.     Alhamad, H., Jaber, D., Abu-Farha, R., Albahar, F., Edaily, S.M., Donyai, P., 2023. Factors Influencing Public Willingness to Reuse the Unused Stored Medications in Jordan: A Cross-Sectional Study. Healthc. 11, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11010075

3.     Alzahrani, K., Ali, M., Azeem, M.I., Alotaibi, B.A., 2023. Efficacy of Public Extension and Advisory Services for Sustainable Rice Production. Agric. 13. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13051062

4.     Consentino, F., Vindigni, G., Spina, D., Monaco, C., Peri, I., 2023. An Agricultural Career through the Lens of Young People. Sustain. 15. https://doi.org/10.3390/su151411148

5.     Liu, J., Huang, S., Wang, Y., 2023. Study of Farmers’ Willingness to Participate in Environmental Governance Based on Recycling, Reduction and Resourcing. Sustain. 15, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.3390/su151410850

6.     Susilowati, S.H., Sumaryanto, I., Nurfatriani, F., Tarigan, H., 2022. Determinants of Farmers ’ Behavior towards Land Conservation 1–21.

7.     Vuong, Q.-H., 2023. Mindsponge theory. De Gruyter.

8.  Xu, X., Zhou, Y., Su, D., Dang, Y., Zhang, X., 2023. Does Education Influence Life-Course Depression in Middle-Aged and Elderly in China? Evidence from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 20. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20021256

9.  Yao, P., Wang, Y., Liu, J., 2023. Can water pollution control influence employment adjustment in enterprises? Econ. Anal. Policy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eap.2023.08.018

 

Author Response

Thank you very much for providing a detailed explanation of the mindsponge theory. It has been immensely helpful for us to understand and apply this theory. We have incorporated the relevant applications of this theory into the existing theoretical framework in Section 119-138. Lastly, in order to facilitate a broader understanding and application of this theory, we hope to see mathematical expressions associated with this theory in the future, as it would make it more easily accepted by rigorous economists who pursue precision.