Unraveling the Behavior Intention of Korean Undergraduate Students toward Living in Rural Areas: The Application of Extended Theory of Planned Behavior

Kim, K.I.; Ma, S.J.

Unraveling the Behavior Intention of Korean Undergraduate Students toward Living in Rural Areas: The Application of Extended Theory of Planned Behavior

2021

Kim, K.I. | Ma, S.J.

Attracting young people to live in rural areas is still a great challenge in South Korea. Nevertheless, previously published studies have not treated the intention of youth toward living in rural Korea in much detail. To fill a research gap and suggest crucial implications, this study aimed to explore the behavior intention of Korean undergraduate students toward living in rural areas by utilizing the extended theory of planned behavior. This study used the survey data conducted by Korea Rural Economic Institute. Descriptive statistics and backward elimination multi-regression were employed for data analysis. The results discovered that 1) educational aspirations, 2) parental education, 3) frequent exposure to agriculture and rural areas in media, living experience in rural areas in the past, and 4) positive attitude toward living in rural areas, subject norms (family and friends), perceived behavioral control (employment and the positive relationships with the locals) were statistically significant variables in predicting behavior intentions of them. Interestingly, gender, family income, parental jobs, people who moved from urban to rural areas, agricultural education and training, and subjective norm (professor) variables were not significantly associated with their behavior intentions. The findings of this study had some practical implications. Also, this study elucidated several limitations and subsequently provided insights for future research.

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