ANTECEDENTS OF ORGANIC PROSUMPTION BEHAVIOUR: EXAMINING THE MODERATING EFFECT OF EASE OF ORGANIC PROSUMPTION PRACTICE

Purpose. The purpose of the paper is to examine the moderating effect of ease of organic prosumption practice on the causal relationships between the antecedents of organic prosumption intention and organic prosumption behaviour of organic prosumers in India. Methodology / approach. The Theory of planned behaviour (TPB) is used to examine the intention and behaviour of engaging in organic prosumption. An empirical investigation was conducted among 128 organic prosumers in Kerala State in India. Data were collected using a survey instrument. Hypotheses were tested using PLS-based structural equation modeling using Smart-PLS software. Results. The relevance of the TPB model is confirmed with modifications in the present study in Indian context. Attitude towards organic prosumption, and perceived behaviour control together accounted for 35.7 % of variation in the organic prosumption intention, and subjective norms had no effect on intention of organic prosumers. Organic prosumption intention explained 48.1 % variation in organic prosumption behaviour. Ease of practicing organic prosumption significantly moderated all cause effect relations predicting intention and behaviour. In the context of increasing awareness on the benefits of organic farming and prosumption behaviour, the study provides a theoretical explanation for explaining why people engage in organic prosumption behaviour. Originality / scientific novelty. This paper examines the Theory of planned behaviour in the context of organic prosumption behaviour in agriculture. No literature exists in Indian context to explain such behaviour. Moreover, the perception of these farmers on the ease of practising organic prosumption is also examined as a moderator. Development of a theoretical model to explain organic prosumption behaviour in an Indian context is the novelty of the present study. Practical value / implications.


INTRODUCTION
Efforts towards environmental sustainability that promote eco-friendly modes of production and consumption of agricultural and food products have gained importance worldwide (Barnes et al., 2022).As a result, the percentage of people choosing organic prosumption as the main mode of prosumption has significantly increased (Gamage et al., 2023).The current methods of food production and consumption have a detrimental impact on both the environment and public health (Ziaul and Shuwei, 2023).The serious repercussions of diet-related diseases, biodiversity loss, and climate change necessitate a move toward sustainable food systems.The adverse environmental effects of agricultural techniques, such as the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, are a significant concern for food production systems (Schaufele and Janssen, 2021).Organic prosumption facilitates the transformation of communities into a more sustainable and eco-friendly society (Lehner, 2019).Two primary issues have hampered previous studies on intention and behaviour.First, the majority of studies have relied on consumer behaviour rather than on prosumer behaviour.Second, the majority of research that has already been done has focused mostly on organic consumption of food items and not on organic prosumption.To address this research gap, the current study examines the role of organic prosumption intention in leading to organic prosumption behaviour.There is a lack of evidence regarding the basis of formation of intention to engage in organic prosumption behaviour.Moreover, such activities consists of a very complex set of processes (Maciaszcyk and Kocot, 2021).Understanding the behaviour is very important since it has impact on economic progress, environmental sustainability, food security, and health issues (Trebsca and Biernat-Jarka, 2023).The activity of organic prosumption can be evaluated from a behavioural motivation perspective (Tian et al., 2017).Arafat and Ibrahim (2018) recommend that the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) of Ajzen (1991) is a widely applied behavioural model helping to understand how people engage in a specific behaviour.
Based on the TPB, the study also intends to analyse the role of attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control on organic prosumption intention.Recent years have seen a sharp increase in the worldwide market for organic food (Willer et al., 2018; Ministry of Agriculture…, 2023), largely due to public awareness about health.While a sizable segment of customers expresses a preference for and regular purchase of organic products, only a very few attempts have been made by them to increase organic prosumption (Willer et al., 2018).Understanding the factors that influence people's decision to engage in organic prosumption and organic prosumption behaviour is crucial for ensuring sustainability in the food market.Drawing on the Theory of planned behaviour, this cross-sectional study intends to identify the factors influencing people's intention to engage in organic prosumption and their organic prosumption behaviour.It also aims to test whether ease of practicing organic prosumption moderates the relationship between organic prosumption intention and organic prosumption behaviour.In light of this, the current study aims to address the following research questions: 1. How does organic prosumption intention function as a predictor of organic prosumption behaviour?
2. Does the ease of practicing organic prosumption moderate the relationship between organic prosumption intention and organic prosumption behaviour?

LITERATURE REVIEW
Prosumers are individuals who consume and produce value, either for self-consumption or consumption by others, and can receive implicit or explicit incentives from organizations involved in the exchange (Lang et al., 2020).A pioneer in value co-creation, the idea of prosumers has persisted as a distinct body of literature till today (Eckhardt et al., 2019;Lang et al., 2020;Martindale and McKinney, 2020;Perera et al., 2020;Chandler and Chen, 2015;Prahalad and Ramaswamy, 2004).At the micro level, sustainable practises turn the community and its citizens into prosumers.A consumer purchases different products for consumption, whereas a prosumer takes the necessary steps to produce the products before consuming them.This is the main distinction between a consumer and a prosumer.Three terms are used in the business world to describe the dynamic role that customers play.The three terms are coproduction (Vargo and Lusch, 2004), co-creation (Prahalad and Ramaswamy, 2004), and prosumption (Toffler, 1980).Co-production and co-creation can be examined as a phenomenon that is concerned with the production and delivery of services within the framework of Service Dominant Logic (SDL).Customers can now actively participate in the production process as co-producers (Yadav and Varadarajan, 2005) and hence can be viewed as prosumers.The term "prosumer" is thought of as a contraction of the words "consumer" and "producer".Prosumer is another term that researchers have conceptualised as a combination of professional and consumer (Humphreys and Grayson, 2008).Expert users who claim high and advanced performance features are indicated by this term.The participatory culture gives rise to the prosumer concept, which blurs the boundaries between the terms "consumptionscape" and the close relationship between buyers and sellers (Jenkins et al., 2006;Parker et al., 2016;Planells, 2017;Chatterjee et al., 2021).
Reviews and feedback are exchanged between consumers and producers by prosumers (Filieri, 2013;Kim et al., 2021;Mariani and Borghi, 2021;Zaman et al., 2023).They are essential as an influencer on other consumers' decisions (Niu et al., 2016;Chatterjee and Chaudhuri, 2021;Mariani et al., 2021).As a result, prosumption in the business setting has transformed the landscape of consumption and turned into a social and psychological phenomenon.However, there is little research into how organic presumptive behaviour is formulated.Hence, we are proposing to fill this research gap through the lens of Theory of planned behaviour.
Attitude and Intention.The degree to which an individual has a favourable or negative assessment of a particular behaviour is referred to as their attitude toward the activity.An individuals' desire to perform behaviour is stronger when they have a more positive attitude about the behaviour (Tarkiainen and Sundqvist, 2005).The degree to which people consider a particular behaviour favourably or unfavourably depends on their attitude.Customers are more inclined to engage in such behaviour when they have a favourable attitude toward a product (Ajzen, 1991).Studies examining the connection between attitude and the intention to purchase organic food have consistently shown favourable relationships.For instance, research by Thogersen (2007) and Chen (2009) suggests that a customer's intention to buy organic food is encouraged by a positive attitude.According to Fishbein and Ajzen (1975), a person's intention to engage in a behaviour is determined by his or her attitude toward the behaviour and the subjective ISSN 2414-584X norm surrounding it.Numerous scholarly investigations have documented that a consumers' attitude significantly influences their intention to act in a specific way (Chen, 2007;Thogersen, 2007;Dean et al., 2008;Scalco et al., 2017;Tandon et al., 2020).Thus, we propose that: H1: Attitude towards organic presumption has a significant positive effect on the intention to engage in organic prosumption.
H2: Ease of practicing organic prosumption moderates the relationship between attitude and organic presumption intention.
Subjective Norms and Intention.Subjective norms are the social pressures placed on an individual by family and friends to participate in or follow a collective behaviour.These norms are the normative expectations and beliefs that this person is subject to from relevant groups or referents (Ajzen, 1991).Family and friends to influence others to act or perceive in a certain way use social influence, sometimes called social pressure (Agudo-Peregrina et al., 2014).It is believed that one of the most significant indicators of behavioural intention is subjective norms (Kagee and Freeman, 2023).These include the ways in which our behaviour is influenced by the ideas of related groups or individuals, such as friends, family, and peers (Ajzen, 1991;Fishbein and Ajzen, 2011;Malhotra and Galletta, 1999).Grandon et al. (2005) observed that a significant factor influencing behavioural intention was the subjective norm.Park (2009) found that behavioural intention is influenced by the subjective norm both directly and indirectly, with the latter being aided by attitude and perceived utility.Hence, we also hypothesise that: H3: Subjective norm has a significant positive effect on the intention to engage in organic prosumption.
H4: Ease of practicing organic prosumption moderates the relationship between subjective norms and organic prosumption intention.
Perceived Behavioural Control and Intention.Perceived behavioural control is an important predictor of one's intention to behave in a specific manner (Hardin-Fanning and Ricks, 2017).An individual's intention to engage in a particular behaviour arises from their expectation of control over that behaviour (Ajzen, 1991).According to the Theory of Planned Behaviour, an individual's intention to engage in a particular behaviour is the immediate antecedent of such behaviour.On the other hand, an individual's intention to engage in a behaviour follows from their attitudes, subjective norm, and perceived behavioural control (PBC), which are the proximal antecedents of an intention to act.TPB implies that an individuals' desire to behave in a particular way should be stronger when their attitude subjective norm and perceived behavioural control are stronger.Ultimately, people are anticipated to act on their goals when presented with the chance, provided they have a sufficient level of actual control over their actions (Ajzen, 2006).So, we assume that: H5: Perceived behavioural control has a significant positive effect on the intention to engage in organic prosumption.
H6: Ease of practicing organic prosumption moderates the relationship between perceived behavioural control and organic prosumption intention.

Intention and Behaviour.
The relationship between intention and behaviour is well established by various theories like the Theory of Reasoned Action (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975), Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986), Unified Theory of Behaviour (Guilamo-Ramos et al., 2008), Theory of Planned Behaviour (Ajzen, 1991), Attitude-Behaviour Theory by Triandis (1980), Protection-Motivation Theory of Rogers (1983), and Integrated Behaviuor Model by Fishbein et al. (2000).Theory of reasoned action assumes that "a person's intention to behave or not to behave in a particular manner is a major determinant of his or her behaviour".Thus, people are generally expected to behave according to their intentions.According to Triandis (1980), behavioural intentions are the directions that people give to themselves, to act in a particular manner.Sheeran (2002) behavioural intentions depict the direction and the intensity of a decision to act in a specific manner.Conner and Norman (2022) suggest that evidences prove the existence of effect of intention on behaviour.In line with the above, we propose that: H7: Organic prosumption intention has a significant positive effect on the organic prosumption behaviour.
H8: Ease of practicing organic prosumption moderates the relationship between organic presumption intention and organic prosumption behaviour.
Based on the literature, we have formulated the conceptual model for this study as below:

METHODOLOGY
Several farmer collectives in Kerala follow organic farming methods.Many of the farmers are prosumers.The present study was done among the farmers following organic prosumption practices, who were the members of such farmer collectives.We approached four such collectives vigorously engaged in activities related to organic farming methods.There were 1128 farming members in these collectives.Among them, 172 identified themselves as pursuing organic prosumption in their agriculturerelated activities.It meant that they followed organic farming methods to cultivate ISSN 2414-584X agricultural produces for their family consumption requirements only.
A survey method was used to collect data for testing the proposed hypotheses.Data were collected from a final sample of 128 organic prosumers.The sample comprised of 81 (63.3 %) males and 47 (36.7 %) females.A high portion of respondents (72%) reported that they have been pursuing organic prosumption for the past five years.
The conceptual model developed for the study consisted for six constructs measured using multi-item scale.Attitude, perceived behavioural control, subjective norms, intention, and behaviour were measured using the items drawn from Ajzen (1991), and adapted to the context of the study.Attitude related to a person's perception regarding organic presumption as advantageous, attractive, satisfying, making him/her choose the activity as a choice of career.Perceived behavioural control related to how the person perceive the activity of organic presumption as easy to carry forward, as well as his/her confidence about efforts and knowledge in the field, helping him/her to succeed.Subjective norms related to the person's thoughts about support and inspiration he could draw from his family, friends, and colleagues in his/her activity of organic presumption.Intention related to the person's readiness and seriousness with which he/she would carry on the activity with determination to succeed.Behaviour related to the activities that the organic prosumer would carry out in terms of purchase of seeds, seedlings, fertilisers, weed control and pesticides, ensuring sustainable methods of transportation, storage, and consumption.The moderating variable 'ease of practice' was measured using items adapted from Castiblanco Jimenez et al. ( 2021), Dai and Cheng (2022).Ease of practice measured the organic prosumer's perception on how easy it would be to apply concepts, techniques and processes related to organic presumption.
The instrument was initially developed in English.Content validation of the instrument was done by sending the initial instrument to five subject matter experts (SMEs) drawn from the areas of agriculture and environment, and possessing a doctoral degree.Operational definitions of the constructs were provided and the experts were asked to score the test items and rate them based on their relevance and representativeness to the construct measured.Items achieving a content validity ratio of at least 0.60 were retained.For administration purposes, the instrument in English was translated into Malayalam, which was the native language.Two language experts forward translated the instrument, which is reconciled by a third language subject expert.All the items were scored on a five-point Likert-type scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree.
To test the model proposed in the study, partial least squares based structural equation modeling analysis was performed using Smart-PLS software.Path coefficients, it's corresponding T-statistics, and p-values were computed to examine the statistical significance of the causal effects of predictor constructs.Coefficient of determination was computed to assess the explanatory power of the model.Effect sizes were computed to assess the importance of each predictor construct in the model.The behaviour of organic prosumers was viewed through the lens of Theory of planned ISSN 2414-584X behaviour (Ajzen, 1991) modified by adding ease of practising organic prosumption as a moderator variable.
To examine the proposed cause-effect and moderating relationships, partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used with Smart-PLS software.PLS-SEM is a casual-predictive approachit develops statistical models for prediction to provide casual explanations (Sarstedt et al., 2017).Research with PLS-SEM has significantly increased since 2015 (Hair et al., 2011), and is now extensively applied in many social sciences disciplines (Sosik et al., 2009).Hair et al. (2017) advocates the use of PLS-SEM where the model is composed of complex relations with a number of constructs.Kock et al. (2021) identifies that in cases of self-reported studies, the problem of common method bias can arise when data are captured using the same response method, which can severely impede the validity of the study.Hence, it is imperative to identify and avoid it (Chang et al., 2010;Jakobsen and Jensen, 2015).We used Harman's Single Factor Test to ensure that common method bias do not exist in the present study (Chang et al., 2010).The results of Harman's Single Factor Test showed that a single factor was responsible for 32.24 % of total variance.Based on Podsakoff et al. (2003), it is concluded that the measurement was free of common method bias.

Measurement Model Evaluation.
The evaluation of the measurement model consisted of the evaluation of the reliability (consistency), convergent validity and discriminant validity of the measures (Hair et al., 2019).Reliability of the scale was measured using Cronbach's alpha and composite reliability as recommended by Netemeyer (2003).Cronbach's alpha values 0.70 or above (Nunnally and Bernstein, 1994), and composite reliability scores above 0.60 (Henseler and Sarstedt, 2013) is a proof of good reliability.Table 2 gives the results of test of reliability of the measurement model.Cronbach's alpha was found to be the following: attitude (0.825); subjective norms (0.862); perceived behavioural control (0.906); organic prosumption intention (0.839); organic prosumption behaviour (0.779); ease of practicing organic prosumption (0.876).In all cases, the computed values were above the minimum 0.70 recommended by Nunnally and Bernstein (1994).Composite reliability values were: attitude (0.841); subjective norms (0.878); perceived behavioural control (0.931); organic prosumption intention (0.849); organic prosumption behaviour (0.809); ease of practicing organic prosumption (0.913).In all cases, the computed values were above the minimum 0.60 recommended by Henseler and Sarstedt (2013).Based on these results, we concluded that the measurement model is reliable.Convergent validity of the model was measured using Item loadings and Average Variance Extracted (AVE) based on the recommendations of Hair et al. (2014).Item loadings of all items loaded on a single construct should be 0.708 or higher (Hair et al., 2017).AVE of a construct has to be above 0.50 (Bagozzi and Yi, 1988).Tables 3 and  4 gives the convergent validity results.The range of item loadings on the corresponding factor was as follows: attitude (0.797 to 0.873); subjective norms (0.771 to 0.887); perceived behavioural control (0.832 to 0.902); organic prosumption intention (0.783 to 0.877); organic prosumption behaviour (0.710 to 0.907); ease of practicing organic prosumption (0.813 to 0.915).In all cases, the computed item loadings were above the minimum 0.708 recommended by Hair et al. (2013).AVE values were: attitude (0.697); subjective norms (0.729); perceived behavioural control (0.786); organic prosumption intention (0.703); organic prosumption behaviour (0.667); ease of practicing organic prosumption (0.764).In all cases, the computed AVE values were above the minimum 0.50 recommended by Bagozzi and Yi (1988).Based on these results we concluded that the measurement model possesses convergent validity.We tested discriminant validity of the model using Cross-loadings and Heterotrait-Monotrait (HTMT) Ratio, based on the recommendations of Rasoolimanesh (2022).Gefen and Straub (2005) suggested that item loadings below 0.40 with factors, it do not measure are indicative of good discriminant validity.Kline (2011) suggests threshold value of 0.85 for HTMT, and higher values are indicative of lack of discriminant validity (Henseler et al., 2015).Table 4 shows that cross loadings of each item with other constructs were very lowattitude (0.122 to 0.425); subjective norms (0.115 to 0.366); perceived behavioural control (0.134 to 0.407); organic prosumption intention (0.106 to 0.0.384);organic prosumption behaviour (0.122 to 0.414); ease of practicing organic prosumption (0.147 to 0.409)as recommended by Gefen and Straub (2005).Table 5 shows that the HTMT values are all well below 0.85 suggested by Kline (2011).Based on these results, we concluded that the measurement model achieved discriminant validity.Figure 2 presents of results the measurement model evaluation.Source: analysis results.

Figure 2. Measurement model evaluation results (item loadings and R 2 )
Source: analysis output.
Structural Model Assessment.Structural model was assessed to examine the direct effects of predictors and the moderating effects of ease of practising organic prosumption.Based on the recommendations of Hair et al. (2017), we reported the path coefficients and its statistical significance, coefficient of determination and its statistical significance, effect sizes, and predictive relevance of the model.We have also examined the structural model for multi-collinearity issues.Multicollinearity can challenge the results of SEM analysis (Tarka, 2018), and models proposing moderating relations are particularly vulnerable to it (Little et al., 2007).We examined multicollinearity using Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) based on the recommendations of Hair et al. (2014), where values above 5.00 indicates existence of issues (Menard, 1996).Table 6 gives the VIF values which shows that (i) for the predictors of organic prosumption intention, the VIF vales were 1.099 (attitude), 1.217 (subjective norms), 1.179 (perceived behavioural control), and 1.263 (ease of practicing organic prosumption); (ii) for the predictors of organic prosumption behaviour, the VIF values were 1.073 (organic prosumption intention), and 1.319 (ease of practicing organic prosumption).Since the computed values were lower than the threshold suggested by Menard (1996), we concluded that the structural model was free of multi-collinearity issues.Table 7 gives the path coefficients of direct causal effects.Attitude (β = 0.524, p < 0.001), and perceived behavioural control (β = 0.342, p < 0.001), had a significant positive effect on organic prosumption intention; the effect of subjective norms (β = 0.107, p = 0.063) on organic prosumption intention was not significant.We also found that the effect of organic prosumption intention on organic prosumption behaviour was positive and significant (β = 0.476, p < 0.001).Thus, H1, H3, and H4 were supported, while H2 was not supported.We also examined the moderation effect of ease of practicing organic prosumption.The results of moderation effects are given in Table 8.Ease of practising organic prosumption had a significant moderation effect on the direct relation between (i) attitude and organic prosumption intention (β = 0.165, p < 0.001); (ii) perceived behavioural control and organic prosumption intention (β = 0.213, p < 0.001); and (iii) organic prosumption intention → organic prosumption behaviour (β = 0.095, p = 0.018).Thus, H5, H7, and H8 were supported, while H6 was not supported.Based on Benitez, Llorens, and Braojos (2018), we examined the practical relevance of the effects by computing the effect sizes (f 2 ) of the direct relations.Cohen (1988) recommended 0.35 for large, 0.15 for medium, and 0.02 for small effect sizes.The results are given in Table 9.We concluded that the effect of attitude (f 2 = 0.479) was large in the model and the effect of perceived behavioural control (f 2 = 0.137) and organic prosumption intention (f 2 = 0.290) was medium.We also concluded that subjective norms (f 2 = 0.098) had only a small effect in the model.To calculate the explanatory power of the model, we reported the coefficient of determination (R 2 ) measuring the portion of variation in the dependent explained by the predictors (Rigdon, 2012).Based on Chin (1998), R 2 value of 0.67 is considered as substantial, 0.33 as moderate, and 0.19 as weak.Table 10 shows that 35.7 % of variation in organic prosumption intention was explained by the three predictors (attitude, perceived behavioural control and subjective norms), while 48.1 % variation in organic prosumption behaviour was explained by its predictor (organic prosumption intention).Thus, we concluded that the model had substantial explanatory power.We examined the out-of-sample predictive power of the model using Q 2 Predict.The models' ability to predict new cases not included in the estimation (Shmueli et al., 2019) is examined by obtaining k-fold cross-validated prediction errors, and summary statistics like RMSE and MAE for the latent variables (Ringle et al., 2022).We reported the model's ability to predict organic prosumption behaviour and the results are shown in Table 11.Based on the recommendations of Ringle et al. (2022), since the computed Q 2 Predict value is positive, and since MAE value was lower than RMSE value, we concluded that the model exhibited good predictive performance.

DISCUSSION
The evaluation of the measurement model confirmed the reliability and validity of the factor structure of the constructs used to develop the conceptual model for the study.Thus, it may be suggested that the items used in the present study to measure the constructs may be tolerably replicated in studies relating to the behaviour and intention of organic prosumption.Theoretical development for the study was largely drawn from the Theory of planned behaviour.Consistent with the recommendations of the TPB model, the present study found that attitude of individuals and their perceived behavioural control were significant contributors towards the intention to engage in organic prosumption behaviour.The findings are consistent with that of Ashari et al. (2018) who identified intention as a strong predictor for intention to engage in organic rice farming activities in Indonesia.Borges et al. (2016) reported that among Brazilian cattle farmers, strong personal attitudes increased farmers' intention to use improved natural inputs in farming activities.Nguyen et al. (2021) reported that in Vietnam, among factors that influence farmers' intention towards engaging in organic agricultural production, their personal attitude had very important positive influence.Furthermore, consistent with the recommendations of the TPB model, the present study also found that the behavioural control perceived by farmers was also a significant contributor towards the intention to engage in organic prosumption behaviour.Povey et al. (2000) found that regarding the intention towards healthy production and consumption, the effect of behaviour control was significant and positive, but acted as a strongly moderated by perceived social support.Lalani et al. (2016), Deng et a. (2016) also reported similar results where the ability of farmers to control their behaviour affected their intention to engage in conservation agriculture behaviour.Conversely, inconsistent with the TPB model, the present study found that subjective norms do not affect the intention of individuals to engage in organic prosumption.The finding is inconsistent with Yanakittkul and Aungvaravong (2020) who suggested that group norms may strongly influence farming behaviour in a study in Thailand.Mardianah et al. ( 2021) also reported that support from fellow farmers, encouragement from instructors etc. can improve farmers' intention to engage in organic farming.
Definitely, the personal attitude of individuals towards organic prosumption can be significantly shaped by their perceptions towards ecological sustainability, environmental protection, and responsible waste management practices.Such perceptions would lead to the development of feelings of environmental concern, and ecological responsibility, thereby leading to an ecological attitude.These ecologycantered attitudes may be internalised to develop a more generic attitude, thereby driving an intention in an individual to engage in prosumption activities based on ecologically sustainable practices.We were not surprised to find that perceived behaviour control was also significant predictor of intention to engage in organic prosumption.In fact, since organic farming and concomitant prosumption intention requires a significant level of concerted effort and commitment to practice as a way of life.Mainly, intending to engage in organic prosumption would be an important decision with clear plans to succeed.Peer groups and collectives of experts serve as a guiding light to their activities that instil confidence in them to control, manage and succeed in their intent.On the other hand, we were surprised to find that subjective norms had no effect on the intention of organic prosumers.People very close to the prosumers, usually family and close relatives, may not always provide adequate support to prosumers.Perhaps this can be explained by the fact that prosumption and organic farming together can be quite challenging, requiring immense commitment of financial, physical, and emotional investments, which in the initial stages may appear not to be productive or sustainable.Revenue streams may be expected to lag and investments to lead.This may dwindle the confidence of near ones, who may even think about withdrawing their support, though in rare cases.It may be understood that the decision to engage in organic prosumption is usually an intensely emotional one, and rarely does one expect unconditional support and outlooks from the circle of known people.
The effect of organic prosumption intention on organic prosumption behaviour was found to be profoundly significant and positive.Chen and Chang (2012) also found positive relationship between intention and actual consumption of organic food.In India, Saxena and Vij (2023) determined that the level of intention to consume organic food positively influenced the actual behaviour of purchase.Conversely, Wei et al. (2022) concluded that in China, though many people have great intention to use organic food, their actual usage may be low.Such strong translation of intent into actual behaviour is attributable to the intensity with which organic prosumption is pursued.There are evidences to prove that many successful executives and professionals were willing to rescind their job and pursue activities like organic farming and prosumption, not as an income generating activity alone.Such decisions spurted out from their intense desire to do something unique, purposeful, and socially impactful.Many put in huge amounts of their time, money, effort, and emotion as investment and hence, make sure that their intention is successfully implemented.Generally, organic prosumers ensure that the seedlings that they use are not genetically modified, or at least, they take care to procure it from very reliable sources claiming to be organic in nature.Fertilisers and pesticides are an area of great concernprosumers following organic farming practices are very particular on using organic naturally occurring substances to enhance productivity of plants, fertility of soil, and control of pests and weeds.Another area of importance is the methods of storage and transportation, where it is ensured that no chemical-based preservatives are used to increase the shelf-life of the harvest.
Unlike the traditional methods of farming dependent on chemical-based fertilisers, pesticides and preservatives, engaging in organic farming along with prosumption is a double responsibility.Genetically modified and engineered seeds and saplings, chemical-based fertilisers, pesticides, and preservatives are easily available in the market.Against such very powerful and visible corporate products, chemicalfree and nature-based inputs are not always competent enough, owing to their local nature and poor brand-visibility.Such situations are hard for organic prosumers to handle, and may propagate a general perception of difficulty of practicing organic prosumption.However, it is also clear that when a person makes the decision to go into organic farming or prosumption, it is often a deliberate, well thought out process based on a long period of learning.There are number of collectives and organisations of such farmers who, understanding the need to propagate the benefits of these techniques, guide and assist new ventures.The moral and technical support provided by these collectives cannot be overlookedin many cases, when the essential family support is lacking, the support of these collectives proves to be critical.In general, it should be understood that the perception of these new enterprises towards such agricultural activities is usually positive and helps to translate their attitudes and intentions to prosume into actual behaviour.

CONCLUSIONS
The study attempted to explain the behaviour of organic prosumers using the TPB approach.The overall intent was to test and develop a theoretical model to explain why people engage in organic prosumption.Based on literature, five constructs were identified.Attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behaviour control were identified as predictors of organic prosumption intention.Intention was the predictor of organic prosumption behaviour.The theory was modified, by adding ease of practicing organic prosumption as a moderator of the cause-effects.The analysis was done in two partsone, the measurement model was evaluated to ensure that the constructs are reliable and valid, and that the model was testable; two, the structural model was assessed to examine if the cause-effects that was proposed in the conceptual model as statistically significant.For this, hypotheses were formulated.Descriptive analysis showed that organic prosumers exhibited high levels of perception regarding the constructs under study.
The structural model assessment results proved that attitude (β = 0.524; p-value < 0.001) was a significant predictor of intention to engage in organic prosumption.Subjective norm was not a very strong predictor of intention, since the path effect was low (β = 0.107; p-value = 0.063; not significant at 5 % level).Perceived behaviour control was also a significant predictor of intention to prosume (β = 0.342; p-value < 0.001).The most important finding was that the intention to prosume was a significant predictor of prosumption behaviour (β = 0.476; p-value < 0.001).Thus, it was concluded that for those people with higher levels of intention to prosume, higher was the probability that they would engage in such actual behaviour.Ease of prosumption practice was found to be significantly moderating the effect of attitude on intention (β = 0.165; p-value < 0.001), and behavioural control on intention (β = 0.213; p-value < 0.001).Ease of prosumption practice also significantly moderated the effect of intention on behaviour (β = 0.095; p-value = 0.018), but the effect was not very profound.In all cases, the moderating effect was positive, proving that the cause-effect relation was strengthened by the perception of ease with which prosumption could be undertaken.
Thus, it was successfully confirmed that the TPB model can be used to explain the intention and behaviour of organic prosumers.The model stands slightly modified, incorporating the moderating effect of the perception of prosumers regarding the ease of engaging on organic prosumption.Their perception was capable of positively influencing their attitudes, behavioural control, and behavioural intention.
The results of the analysis had revealed that though attitude and perceived behaviour control are significant predictors, subjective norms do not contribute to intention to prosume.It is important to note that the close circle of family, colleagues, and friends do not exert a psychological influence over an individuals' decision to engage in prosumption.This is indicative of comparatively low level of social acceptance of organic prosumption.This can ultimately lead to substantial pressure and tautness in the minds of prosumers, since the activity is unique, and substantially different from routine kind of consumption or agriculture.Improved level of acceptance of organic prosumption among society can contribute a lot towards comfort and easiness of engaging in prosumption.Such social acceptance can only come from awareness on the benefits of organic farming and prosumption.The linkages between organic prosumption and environmental sustainability and better health and well-being is a concept that needs to be propagated.In this context, it is worthwhile to note that many governments are promoting green energy consumption and sustainable practices through tax incentives and subsidies.Drawing on such policy initiatives, organic prosumption and its practitioners can benefit immensely from positive and supportive government interventions.Recognition of the contributions made by prosumers, and promoting their success stories can also be a means by which organic prosumption can be brought to the mainstream.Though prosumers believe that organic prosumption is an easy practice, its effect on intention and behaviour is comparatively low.Ideally, such belief of easiness of practice should lead to higher levels of intention translated in to actual behaviour.Support mechanisms in the form of financial assistances, technical advices, awareness sessions on farming practices, reliable and sustainable supply of raw materials and inputs can further the ease of prosumption practice.A machinery, capable of coordinating such support systems would be a great boon for these individuals engaged in organic prosumption.The machinery could consist of government providing loans at subsidised rates, with deferred and flexible repayment schemes.The agriculture department of the government should have a separate and specialised wing for organic presumption, which would compile indigenous knowledge systems and practices from organic farmers, develop expert panels, and disseminate such knowledge.The agricultural department of the government can assist the vegetable and fruit promotion councils, and crop research institutes in identifying reliable sources of inputs and raw materials and in developing new and modified breeds of seeds, seedlings, and crops with higher immunity and productivity.

LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH
The sample for the study was drawn from a population of organic prosumers who were either organised or semi-organised under some form of collectives of such ventures, since that was the only way of identifying respondents in a geographically scattered universe of organic prosumers.The situation of unorganised organic prosumers may also be studied into.Thus, it is recommended that in future, the model may be applied in such a context.The present study is limited to the State of Kerala in India.However, the practices and procedures of organic prosumption can be common across the wide geographic region of India, actual attitudes and behaviours of individuals may be different in different social and cultural settings.A more geographically expansive study covering different states can provide a clearer picture regarding the applicability of theory.Moreover, many studies have explored the role of factors that affect the attitude of individuals in engaging in a particular activity.Thus, future research is recommended to also examine the role of consumer attitudinal antecedents.
Conflicts of interest: the authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.Conceptual model proposed in the study Source: developed by authors, compiled from literature.

Table 7 Path coefficients of direct effects of predictors of dependent constructs
*Significant at 5 % level.Source: analysis results.

Table 8 Moderation effect of ease of organic prosumption practice
Source: analysis results.