Abstract: To use pesticides safely by farmers can not only promote agricultural production, reduce environmental pollution and ensure safe supply of agricultural products, but also protect the health of farmers, and ultimately achieve the sustainable development of agricultural production. Therefore, to explore the factors affecting the safe use of pesticides by farmers is of great significance in guiding the farmers for safe production. Household characteristics, production characteristics and cognitive features are the three main factors affecting the use of pesticides by farmers. Based on the field survey data, this paper makes use of the structural equation to test empirically and correct the theoretical model. The results show that farmer household characteristics have an indirect impact on their behaviors during the use of pesticides and a direct or indirect impact on their behaviors after their use of pesticides. The production characteristics have only an indirect impact during and after their use of pesticides, while pesticides awareness can have direct impact on their behaviors during and after their use of pesticides, and the effects are most obvious.

Key words: rural household characteristics; production characteristics; pesticide cognition; safe use of pesticides