Health protection and promotion model in agricultural workers: a grounded theory study
Abstract
Background: Agricultural workers are a vulnerable group intensively exposed to physical, biological, and chemical hazards owing to challenging work and living conditions. These exposures may lead to serious health outcomes, including acute and chronic diseases, poisoning, accidents, injuries, and death, making health protection and promotion in this group an important public health priority. This study aimed to develop a theoretical model for health protection and promotion in agricultural workers.
Methods: This qualitative study used Charmaz’s constructivist grounded theory. Data were generated with a total of 20 agricultural workers in a district in southern Türkiye using a semi-structured interview guide. Data collection and analysis were conducted simultaneously until theoretical saturation was achieved. Data analysis involved constant comparison, memo writing, and initial, focused, and theoretical coding. Glaser’s 6C Code Family framework was used to structure the analysis.
Results: Agricultural workers’ perspectives were reflected in the 6C Code Family, with 8 categories and 26 subcategories: conditions included individual self-care behaviors and access to health services; causes included individual attitudes; consequences included physical and psychosocial health outcomes; contexts included working conditions and environmental factors, social roles and cultural pressures, and structural barriers and insecurity; contingencies included environmental and unexpected risks; and covariances included the cyclical relationships between these findings.
Conclusions: This study shows that health protection and promotion in agricultural workers are shaped not only by individual behaviors but also by precarious working conditions, environmental and chemical exposures, gender roles, barriers to accessing health services, and structural conditions. The developed model may contribute to the planning of integrated public health interventions by addressing these factors.
Key messages: • Protecting and promoting agricultural workers’ health is multifaceted, shaped by factors such as work conditions, environmental risks, social roles, cultural pressures, and healthcare barriers.
• The developed theoretical model may guide public health interventions for agricultural workers across individual, environmental, social, and structural levels.
Related
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- The contributions of agricultural equipment and digital technologies to sustainable crop protection
- Agricultural machinery and digital technologies for agroecology: moving beyond pesticides in crop protection
- Nature’s Complexity for Crop Protection: Integrating Botanical Solutions into Biodiverse Agricultural Landscapes
- Association between body mass index and musculoskeletal disorders among agricultural workers: a systematic review
BibTeX
@article{karabiyik2026health,
title = {{Health protection and promotion model in agricultural workers: a grounded theory study}},
author = {IH Karabiyik and A Ilgaz},
journal = {The European Journal of Public Health},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.994},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.994},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Health protection and promotion model in agricultural workers: a grounded theory study
AU - IH Karabiyik
AU - A Ilgaz
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - The European Journal of Public Health
DO - 10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.994
UR - https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.994
AB - Background: Agricultural workers are a vulnerable group intensively exposed to physical, biological, and chemical hazards owing to challenging work and living conditions. These exposures may lead to serious health outcomes, including acute and chronic diseases, poisoning, accidents, injuries, and death, making health protection and promotion in this group an important public health priority. This study aimed to develop a theoretical model for health protection and promotion in agricultural workers. Methods: This qualitative study used Charmaz’s constructivist grounded theory. Data were generated with a total of 20 agricultural workers in a district in southern Türkiye using a semi-structured interview guide. Data collection and analysis were conducted simultaneously until theoretical saturation was achieved. Data analysis involved constant comparison, memo writing, and initial, focused, and theoretical coding. Glaser’s 6C Code Family framework was used to structure the analysis. Results: Agricultural workers’ perspectives were reflected in the 6C Code Family, with 8 categories and 26 subcategories: conditions included individual self-care behaviors and access to health services; causes included individual attitudes; consequences included physical and psychosocial health outcomes; contexts included working conditions and environmental factors, social roles and cultural pressures, and structural barriers and insecurity; contingencies included environmental and unexpected risks; and covariances included the cyclical relationships between these findings. Conclusions: This study shows that health protection and promotion in agricultural workers are shaped not only by individual behaviors but also by precarious working conditions, environmental and chemical exposures, gender roles, barriers to accessing health services, and structural conditions. The developed model may contribute to the planning of integrated public health interventions by addressing these factors. Key messages: • Protecting and promoting agricultural workers’ health is multifaceted, shaped by factors such as work conditions, environmental risks, social roles, cultural pressures, and healthcare barriers. • The developed theoretical model may guide public health interventions for agricultural workers across individual, environmental, social, and structural levels.
SN - 1101-1262
SN - 1464-360X
ER -