Abstract Based on the survey data of five provinces of Bohai rim in 2017, this paper uses triple-hurdle sample selection model to analyze the impact of social network on farmers’ market participation behavior and its mechanism. The results show that information searching cost, negotiation cost and execution cost in transaction cost significantly hinder farmers’ market participation behavior. Social network has significant positive impact on farmers’ decision-making of market participation, decision-making of field markets participation and participation degree. The mechanism is that social network reduces the information searching cost, negotiation cost and execution cost, lowers the threshold of farmers’ market transactions, and promotes farmers’ market participation behavior. Higher education level, longer planting years and participation in cooperatives are helpful to market participation decision-making. Furthermore, higher education level, larger planting scale and more labors will choose foreign markets and increase market participation. Therefore, it is necessary to develop the social network driving role of large professional households with sales experience, enhance the degree of farmers’ organization, timely publish the price information of agricultural products, and standardize the agricultural product market to reduce transaction costs.
2020, Vol. 37 
