IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/sustdv/v33y2025i1p1441-1457.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Trade‐offs and synergies between dimensions of well‐being among smallholder farmers in Savannakhet province, Lao PDR

Author

Listed:
  • Jonas L. Appelt
  • Latsamy Siengsounthone
  • Sengaloun Phonekeo
  • Dirk Essink
  • Peter H. Verburg
  • Jasper van Vliet

Abstract

Agrarian transition is often seen as a pathway towards sustainable development and increasing well‐being for rural households. However, empirical evidence on trade‐offs and synergies between different dimensions of well‐being as a result of agrarian transitions is lacking. We conducted a cross‐sectional survey of 360 households across 12 villages in Savannakhet province, Lao PDR. We find evidence of synergies across different farmer types and between all included well‐being dimensions; economic, food security, health, and gender equality. However, for intensive paddy rice farmers, synergies are predominantly positive, while for non‐intensive cash crop farmers synergies are mostly negative. These findings indicate that development in one well‐being dimension may provide improvements in other dimensions, but that benefits can be difficult to achieve for some types of farmers. Our results further suggest that rural development policies focussing on a single well‐being aspect, for example supporting non‐farm incomes, may have co‐benefits beyond the immediate development targets.

Suggested Citation

  • Jonas L. Appelt & Latsamy Siengsounthone & Sengaloun Phonekeo & Dirk Essink & Peter H. Verburg & Jasper van Vliet, 2025. "Trade‐offs and synergies between dimensions of well‐being among smallholder farmers in Savannakhet province, Lao PDR," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(1), pages 1441-1457, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:sustdv:v:33:y:2025:i:1:p:1441-1457
    DOI: 10.1002/sd.3197
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.3197
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/sd.3197?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Martin, Sarah M. & Lorenzen, Kai, 2016. "Livelihood Diversification in Rural Laos," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 231-243.
    2. Diana Feliciano, 2019. "A review on the contribution of crop diversification to Sustainable Development Goal 1 “No poverty” in different world regions," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(4), pages 795-808, July.
    3. Owen O'Donnell & Eddy van Doorslaer & Adam Wagstaff & Magnus Lindelow, 2008. "Analyzing Health Equity Using Household Survey Data : A Guide to Techniques and Their Implementation," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6896, April.
    4. Ramcilovic-Suominen, Sabaheta & Kotilainen, Juha, 2020. "Power relations in community resilience and politics of shifting cultivation in Laos," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    5. Wiltrud Terlau & Darya Hirsch & Michael Blanke, 2019. "Smallholder farmers as a backbone for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(3), pages 523-529, May.
    6. Ly Phan, 2016. "Measuring Women’s Empowerment at Household Level Using DHS Data of Four Southeast Asian Countries," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 126(1), pages 359-378, March.
    7. Jonathan Brooks, 2023. "Agricultural policies and food systems: Priorities for indicator development," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 74(1), pages 3-23, February.
    8. Neil Dawson & Adrian Martin & Laura Camfield, 2019. "Can agricultural intensification help attain Sustainable Development Goals? Evidence from Africa and Asia," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(5), pages 926-946, May.
    9. Garcia Rojas, Diana C. & Appelt, Jonas L. & Epprecht, Michael & Kounnavong, Sengchanh & Elbers, Chris & Lanjouw, Peter F. & van Vliet, Jasper, 2024. "Interactions between sustainable development goals at the district level in Lao PDR," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    10. Måns Nilsson & Dave Griggs & Martin Visbeck, 2016. "Policy: Map the interactions between Sustainable Development Goals," Nature, Nature, vol. 534(7607), pages 320-322, June.
    11. Paul Glewwe & Margaret Grosh, 2000. "Designing Household Survey Questionnaires for Developing Countries : Lessons from 15 Years of the Living Standards Measurement Study, Volume 2," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 15194, April.
    12. Marije Schaafsma & Ilda Dreoni & Lacour Mody Ayompe & Benis N. Egoh & Dewa Putu Ekayana & Arilson Favareto & Sonny Mumbunan & Louise Nakagawa & Jonas Ngouhouo‐poufoun & Marieke Sassen & Thiago Kanashi, 2023. "Mapping social impacts of agricultural commodity trade onto the sustainable development goals," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(4), pages 2363-2385, August.
    13. Anita Breuer & Hannah Janetschek & Daniele Malerba, 2019. "Translating Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Interdependencies into Policy Advice," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-20, April.
    14. Andrew Dorward & Simon Anderson & Yolanda Nava Bernal & Ernesto Sánchez Vera & Jonathan Rushton & James Pattison & Rodrigo Paz, 2009. "Hanging in, stepping up and stepping out: livelihood aspirations and strategies of the poor," Development in Practice, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(2), pages 240-247, April.
    15. Kallio, Maarit Helena & Hogarth, Nicholas John & Moeliono, Moira & Brockhaus, Maria & Cole, Robert & Waty Bong, Indah & Wong, Grace Yee, 2019. "The colour of maize: Visions of green growth and farmers perceptions in northern Laos," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 185-194.
    16. Myriam Pham‐Truffert & Florence Metz & Manuel Fischer & Henri Rueff & Peter Messerli, 2020. "Interactions among Sustainable Development Goals: Knowledge for identifying multipliers and virtuous cycles," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(5), pages 1236-1250, September.
    17. Luis Miguel Fonseca & José Pedro Domingues & Alina Mihaela Dima, 2020. "Mapping the Sustainable Development Goals Relationships," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-15, April.
    18. Barrett, Christopher B., 2008. "Smallholder market participation: Concepts and evidence from eastern and southern Africa," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 299-317, August.
    19. Paul Glewwe & Margaret Grosh, 2000. "Designing Household Survey Questionnaires for Developing Countries : Lessons from 15 Years of the Living Standards Measurement Study, Volume 3," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 15195, April.
    20. Anirudh Krishna, 2010. "Who became poor, who escaped poverty, and why? Developing and using a retrospective methodology in five countries," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(2), pages 351-372.
    21. Haider, L. Jamila & Boonstra, Wiebren J. & Peterson, Garry D. & Schlüter, Maja, 2018. "Traps and Sustainable Development in Rural Areas: A Review," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 311-321.
    22. Yu Feng & Alan D. Ziegler & Paul R. Elsen & Yang Liu & Xinyue He & Dominick V. Spracklen & Joseph Holden & Xin Jiang & Chunmiao Zheng & Zhenzhong Zeng, 2021. "Upward expansion and acceleration of forest clearance in the mountains of Southeast Asia," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 4(10), pages 892-899, October.
    23. Stéphanie Alvarez & Carl J Timler & Mirja Michalscheck & Wim Paas & Katrien Descheemaeker & Pablo Tittonell & Jens A Andersson & Jeroen C J Groot, 2018. "Capturing farm diversity with hypothesis-based typologies: An innovative methodological framework for farming system typology development," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(5), pages 1-24, May.
    24. Luis R Carrasco & Edward L Webb & William S Symes & Lian P Koh & Navjot S Sodhi, 2017. "Global economic trade-offs between wild nature and tropical agriculture," PLOS Biology, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(7), pages 1-22, July.
    25. Van Kien Nguyen & David Dumaresq & Jamie Pittock, 2018. "Impacts of rice intensification on rural households in the Mekong Delta: emerging relationships between agricultural production, wild food supply and food consumption," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 10(6), pages 1615-1629, December.
    26. Lowder, Sarah K. & Skoet, Jakob & Raney, Terri, 2016. "The Number, Size, and Distribution of Farms, Smallholder Farms, and Family Farms Worldwide," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 16-29.
    27. Truong Lam Do & Trung Thanh Nguyen & Ulrike Grote, 2019. "Nonfarm employment and household food security: evidence from panel data for rural Cambodia," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 11(3), pages 703-718, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Huijuan Xiao & Yue Liu & Jingzheng Ren, 2023. "Synergies and trade‐offs across sustainable development goals: A novel method incorporating indirect interactions analysis," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(2), pages 1135-1148, April.
    2. Patricia Urban & Markus Hametner, 2022. "The Economy–Environment Nexus: Sustainable Development Goals Interlinkages in Austria," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-25, September.
    3. Rita Nerland & Heidi Rapp Nilsen & Bjørn Andersen, 2023. "Biosphere‐based sustainability in local governments: Sustainable development goal interactions and indicators for policymaking," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(1), pages 39-55, February.
    4. Breuer, Anita & Leininger, Julia & Malerba, Daniele & Tosun, Jale, 2023. "Integrated policymaking: Institutional designs for implementing the sustainable development goals (SDGs)," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 170(C).
    5. Cameron Allen & Graciela Metternicht & Thomas Wiedmann, 2021. "Priorities for science to support national implementation of the sustainable development goals: A review of progress and gaps," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(4), pages 635-652, July.
    6. Alexis Rulisa & Luuk van Kempen & Dirk-Jan Koch, 2022. "When Local Trade-Offs between SDGs Turn Out to Be Wealth-Dependent: Interaction between Expanding Rice Cultivation and Eradicating Malaria in Rwanda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-24, February.
    7. Biraj Adhikari & Davnah Urbach & Nakul Chettri & Eklabya Sharma & Thomas Breu & Jonas Geschke & Markus Fischer & Graham W. Prescott, 2023. "A multi‐methods approach for assessing how conserving biodiversity interacts with other sustainable development goals in Nepal," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(5), pages 3239-3253, October.
    8. Barik, Debasis & Desai, Sonalde & Vanneman, Reeve, 2018. "Economic Status and Adult Mortality in India: Is the Relationship Sensitive to Choice of Indicators?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 176-187.
    9. Van Landeghem, Bert & Vandeplas, Anneleen, 2018. "The relationship between status and happiness: Evidence from the caste system in rural India," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 62-71.
    10. Leandro De Magalhães & Dongya Koh & Raül Santaeulàlia-Llopis, 2016. "Consumption and Expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa," Bristol Economics Discussion Papers 16/677, School of Economics, University of Bristol, UK, revised 07 Oct 2016.
    11. Xiaowei Yang & Jianmin Gao & Zhongliang Zhou & Jue Yan & Sha Lai & Yongjian Xu & Gang Chen, 2016. "Assessing the Effects of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme on Alleviating the Health Payment-Induced Poverty in Shaanxi Province, China," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(7), pages 1-12, July.
    12. Leandro DE MAGALHÃES & Dongya KOH & Räul SANTAEULILA-LLOPIS, 2019. "The Cost of Consumption Smoothing: Less Schooling and less Nutrition," JODE - Journal of Demographic Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 85(3), pages 181-208, September.
    13. Wiseman, Virginia & Scott, Anthony & Conteh, Lesong & McElroy, Brendan & Stevens, Warren, 2008. "Determinants of provider choice for malaria treatment: Experiences from The Gambia," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 67(4), pages 487-496, August.
    14. Kojo Sarfo Gyamfi & Elena Gaura & James Brusey & Alessandro Bezerra Trindade & Nandor Verba, 2020. "Understanding Household Fuel Choice Behaviour in the Amazonas State, Brazil: Effects of Validation and Feature Selection," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-21, July.
    15. Stefan Dercon & Kate Orkin & Mahreen Mahmud & Robert Garlick & Johannes Haushofer & Richard Sedlmayr, 2023. "Aspiring to a better future: can a simple psychological intervention reduce poverty?," CSAE Working Paper Series 2023-12, Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford.
    16. Richard Palmer-Jones, 2010. "Handbook on impact evaluation: quantitative methods and practices, by S.R. Khandker, G.B. Koolwal and H.A. Samad," Journal of Development Effectiveness, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 2(3), pages 387-390.
    17. Johannes Hoogeveen & Andrew Dabalen & Elvis Mushi & Alvin Etang & Youdi Schipper & Johannes von Engelhardt, 2016. "Mobile Phone Panel Surveys in Developing Countries," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 24595, April.
    18. Sylvie Lambert & Philippe De Vreyer, 2017. "By ignoring intra-household inequality do we underestimate the extent of poverty?," Working Papers DT/2017/05, DIAL (Développement, Institutions et Mondialisation).
    19. Mark Elder, 2025. "Integration versus prioritization in the Sustainable Development Goals: An argument to prioritize environmental sustainability and a just transition," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(1), pages 465-477, February.
    20. Agnieszka Sompolska-Rzechuła & Agnieszka Kurdyś-Kujawska, 2021. "Towards Understanding Interactions between Sustainable Development Goals: The Role of Climate-Well-Being Linkages. Experiences of EU Countries," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-20, April.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:sustdv:v:33:y:2025:i:1:p:1441-1457. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-1719 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.