A Comparative Study on the Heterogeneity of Appropriate-Scale Agricultural Operation: Evidence from Ordinary Farm Households and Family Farms

Appropriate-scale operation is important for integrating ordinary farm households into modern agriculture, yet the appropriate scale may differ substantially across producer types. Using micro-level data from the nationally representative 2021 China Household Finance Survey, this study develops an analytical framework integrating efficiency and resilience perspectives to compare ordinary farm households and family farms. Efficiency is the core empirical dimension and is assessed using cost–benefit analysis, the DEA-BCC model, and multivariate econometric methods. Resilience is treated as a theoretical perspective and a constraint on scale decisions; it is interpreted indirectly through the scale responses of the two groups to disaster shocks rather than measured using a standalone resilience index. The results identify distinct efficiency-based appropriate-scale ranges: 1–3 mu (approximately 0.07–0.20 hm2) for ordinary farm households and 100–200 mu (approximately 6.67–13.33 hm2) for family farms, with lower net profit per unit area at intermediate scales. Economic rationality and institutional constraints show marked heterogeneity across producer types: commercialization, land titling, subsidies, and credit access are more strongly associated with the scale expansion of family farms, whereas non-farm employment opportunities play a more decisive role for ordinary farm households; household labor and social networks contribute to scale expansion in both groups, and their between-group differences are not statistically significant. Disaster impact is associated with a significant reduction in the operational scale of ordinary farm households, whereas in the subgroup estimates the operational scale of family farms shows no significant association with disaster impact, suggesting that family farms are better able to maintain their operational scale. Digital technology also operates through differentiated pathways: it primarily alleviates information and factor constraints among ordinary farm households while strengthening efficiency, financial access, and organizational coordination among family farms. These findings support differentiated scale and digital-agriculture policies in economies characterized by heterogeneous farm structures.