This paper contributes to the debate about attitudes and behavior of farmers in respect to the environment. The empirical base comprises a survey of 2,095 farmers in Austria. A complex model of environmental attitudes in the agricultural sector has been developed. Using path analysis, this model was confronted with the survey data both to test it and to explore some major questions of the current environmental debate. An important finding is the strong influence that practical knowledge and personal experience have on the farmer's behavior. Another major result of the model in comparison with other studies is the strong relationship derived between atfitude and behavior. The discussion of the study results considers links between socioeconomic, cognitive, and other contextual factors that form and influence farmers' environmental attitudes and behavior.
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