Faculty Members’ Perspectives on Genetically Modified Foods: The Mediating Role of Food Integrity

Food security in developing countries faces new challenges these days. Scientific developments and biotechnological applications such as transgenic products are of particular importance due to their principal impact on key contexts such as food production. If transgenic products are a potential solution to the world's challenges, authorities need to know and understand the core of society's responses to scientific innovations and their products. This paper expands the body of knowledge by examining the predictors of transgenic product consumption by mediating the role of food integrity. The study population included ۶۸۱ faculty­ members of Shiraz University in Iran. The sample size was estimated at ۱۴۰ faculties using the stratified random sampling method, based on the Cochran formula. The results of applying path analysis showed a good fit of the variables entered in the conceptual model (RMSEA= ۰.۰۶۸). The explaining power of variables in the model respectively include attitude to transgenic product, environmental concerns, trust, and ethical norms. Results of this investigation could be effective in providing practical solutions in social issues such as enhanced attitude to the transgenic product with cultural mechanisms, emphasis on ethical norms, and trust-building in the academic community. These factors, based on public awareness of human involvement in food systems, can be improved by planning and presentation by researchers from relevant business and executive organizations. Based on these findings, providing factors that ensure the health of people could reduce the level of concern about the issues of food integrity and lead to the ideal level of acceptance and consumption of transgenic products.

Keywords:

Biotechnology , Food security , Psychological factors , Transgenic products.