[Objective] To analyze the types, characteristics, mechanism and main effects of farmers' soil conservation behaviors in the Three Gorges Reservoir area, and to provide a reference for decision-making regarding regional soil erosion control and ecological environment improvement.[Methods] We investigated 113 farmers inhabited in the region with serious soil loss in five counties of the Three Gorges Reservoir area (Chongqing section), using questionnaires and in-depth interviews. According to the survey data, we analyzed the types and mechanism of soil conservation behavior of farmers in the reservoir area.[Results] The farmers' soil conservation behaviors in the Three Gorges Reservoir area mainly include voluntary behaviors and policy-oriented behaviors. Voluntary behaviors are that farmers creatively adapt to the environment and protect farmland, to reduce investment and increase revenue. The farmers' motivation of soil conservation is elicited by farmers' needs. Under the impact of the motivation, farmers are willing to carry out soil conservation practices, including digging side ditches, turning sediments back to farmland, slope length cutdown and downslope tillage, contour ploughing, no-tillage, upslope ploughing, intercropping, planting hedgerow and herbicides weeding. Among them, four kinds of tillage behaviors, i.e., crop intercropping, digging side ditches, slope length cutdown and downslope tillage, and turning sediments back to farmland, are more popular in the Three Gorges reservoir area. Farmers are easily influenced by the national soil conservation policies and thus participate in soil conservation ecological environment construction. The policy-oriented behaviors are a combination of the national strategic needs and the actual needs of farmers, and it could further be categorized into three subtypes. The first one is labor fee. Famers participate in the soil conservation projects such as transforming slope into terrace and obtain remuneration. Secondly, it is economic compensation. Farmers respond to the national demand of soil conservation and take defarming actions and get some compensation. The third category is for government subsidies. Farmers build soil conservation facilities like ponds, roads, etc., for pre or post subsidies.[Conclusion] Farmers in the Three Gorges Reservoir area have rich experience in soil conservation. Many soil conservation behaviors bring positive effects and they are worth promoting among the small watershed management and other ecological construction projects.