Methodology: Multivariate analysis is used to investigate the associations between region, education level, previous experience in dairy farming, herd size, age and the farmer's perception of the usefulness (PU) and ease-of-use of a technology (PEOU), and the likelihood of that technology being adopted.

Findings: The results of this study identify a high rate of grazing, artificial insemination (AI) and financial management technology adoption among NE dairy farmers whose technology decisions are primarily motivated by financial considerations and are closely related to the PU and PEOU scores of the technology. Grassland measurement had the lowest adoption rate (51%) compared to AI (86%) and farm financial management (84%).

Practical Implications: The substantial importance of PU and PEOU to technology adoption decisions indicates that future research, extension and education programmes should place increased emphasis on the benefits and usability of key technologies in addition to evaluating their scientific merit.

Originality/Value: For the first time information assessing technology adoption amongst new dairy farmers is available. This has the potential to improve and increase extension and education for new dairy farmers in a future post-quota environment.  相似文献   

Originality: The suitability of low-external input technologies such as SRI for diverse African farmers is a contentious issue. Existing studies suggest that adoption may be skewed away from poorer farmers, but no studies have explicitly categorized farmers who participate in adoption of SRI.

Methods: Farmers exposed to SRI were randomly surveyed. Sample farmers were categorized into three socioeconomic groups – wealthier, middle-wealth, and poorer – using factor and cluster analysis approaches. Wealth category is then used in a logit model to determine probabilities of adopting SRI practices across the different groups.

Findings: The results indicate that middle-wealth group adopt SRI to a greater extent compared to the wealthier and poorer groups. The extent of adoption by wealthier and poorer groups is similar, although constraining circumstances differ. Access to factors that consistently explained adoption: contact with extension services, land with water, and labor, vary systematically among groups.

Theoretical implication: Low adoption is often assumed on reduced exposure to a technology, and non-adopters are expected to eventually adopt. The results suggest, however, that farmers, who have not adopted, may not do so, even after being exposed. SRI as a package does not fit their socioeconomic conditions.

Practical implications: To support adoption across all wealth categories, extension should focus on promoting individual practices rather than the package to enable farmers adopt practices that fit their socioeconomic characteristics.  相似文献   

Design/Methodology/Approach: A participatory experimentation approach was followed to arrive at recommendations matching with local preferences and context. In total, 16 groups of 5 farmers were monitored during 4 years.

We monitored research strategy of the farmer groups by considering the following: (1) the type of treatments, (2) the inclusion of responsive treatments, (3) the actual responses achieved and (4) the treatments perceived optimal.

Findings: We found that the farmer groups followed a very rational, context-rooted strategy that, e.g. in its focus on straw production and the use of combinations of organic and mineral fertilizers, differed from that of the researchers.

Practical implications: Farmers often follow research strategies different from standard scientific approaches. Consequently, in participatory experimentation, involvement of farmers in defining the actual experimental design is required to deal with local preferences and context.

Theoretical implications: Outcomes of participatory experimentation are directly relevant for further outscaling of the technologies involved. In addition, insights and understanding obtained also might support upscaling in the form of designing rural development policies.

Originality/Value: Participatory experimentation processes are applied in development work for different reasons but often concentrate primarily on direct outputs. For development workers engaged in such processes, it is important to realize that actual involvement of participants in the whole process is equally important.  相似文献   

Methodology/approach: Cross-sectional farm-level data were collected during July and August 2014. A sample of 198 farm households was selected for interviewing by using a multistage, random sampling technique. We employed a logistic regression model, frequency counts, and percentages to analyze the data.

Findings: Adoption decisions were mainly affected by extension-related variables – training, membership in a farmers’ group, and off-farm employment. Extension participation was found to be influenced by socioeconomic variables – age, education, household size, and distance to the extension office. Our findings reveal that distance to the extension office and off-farm employment limited participation in extension activities and adoption, respectively, and education, household size, and group membership stimulated participation in extension programs.

Practical implications: Recognition of the determinants of farmers’ participation in extension services and innovation adoption ensures that targeted extension approaches are used to address these factors in various stages of planning, delivering, and evaluating extension programs.

Theoretical implications: Innovation adoption follows a systematic decision-making process. Although personal characteristics are important, widespread use of new technology requires a conducive social and institutional context. Because contexts vary by country or region, extension services providers should create institutions favorable for innovation adoption within a social system.

Originality/value: This research is original and highly valuable to identify the factors associated with extension participation and innovation adoption in the rural hilly region of Nepal. This also provides a new direction to operationalize farmer-oriented policies of agricultural extension and so can be helpful for agricultural policy-makers in devising programs of extension services.  相似文献   

Design: We use the network map analysis in a case study approach as a tool to demonstrate the linkages between the key actors and stakeholders in the information network of farmers.

Findings: The government institutions are well networked among themselves but have limited interactions with non-government sources. Farmers in Bihar have strong linkages with few network actors, who are important nodes in the social knowledge network. The study showed heterogeneity and complexity in the network shape and structure across different districts.

Practical Implications: Knowledge networks and social networks are the drivers of information sharing and play a significant role in the diffusion of agricultural technology and related knowledge. Understanding these networks provides a platform for introducing the agricultural technologies and getting connected to a wider group of farming communities.

Theoretical Implications: The study shows that the network is formed by different actors and their role determine the nature and shape of the network. Knowledge of this heterogeneity is important in designing or revamping agricultural information systems.

Originality: Information and knowledge networks are least explored in the agricultural information dissemination process. Some studies have shown the role of actors and social networks, but this study uniquely explores and presents the heterogeneity of these networks.  相似文献   

Design/Methodology/Approach: The paper links the theoretical understanding of the existing multiple sources of information that farmer use, with the empirical model to analyze the factors that affect the farmer's adoption of different agriculture-related information sources. The analysis is done using a multivariate probit model and primary survey data of 1,200 farmer households of five Indo-Gangetic states of India, covering 120 villages.

Findings: The results of the study highlight that farmer's age, education level and farm size influence farmer's behaviour in selecting different sources of information. The results show that farmers use multiple information sources, that may be complementary or substitutes to each other and this also implies that any single source does not satisfy all information needs of the farmer.

Practical implication: If we understand the likelihood of farmer's choice of source of information then direction can be provided and policies can be developed to provide information through those sources in targeted regions with the most effective impact.

Originality/Value: Information plays a key role in a farmer's life by enhancing their knowledge and strengthening their decision-making ability. Farmers use multiple sources of information as no one source is sufficient in itself.  相似文献   

Methodology: A multiple regression analysis was employed to assess the combined effect of the knowledge bases, factors such as age of the household head, land size, marketing channels and geophysical factors (such as land slope) on linseed productivity.

Findings: The findings reveal no differences in productivity between trained and untrained farmers. They further show that training and the interaction between training and experience positively influence productivity. Our findings, however, reveal farmer education to have an inverse yet insignificant effect on productivity. Furthermore, we found that factors such as the slope of the land and the choice of marketing channel also play an important role in influencing productivity.

Practical implications: Moving away from the traditional top-down approach could be the answer to avoid a mismatch between the information given by trainers and what the farmers actually need.

Theoretical implications: The study used interaction variables of knowledge bases, and attempted to demonstrate the importance of a tacit knowledge base, which is often not well documented and therefore neglected in research.

Originality/value: The research demonstrates the combined effects that interactions between several knowledge bases have on the productivity of linseed farmers.  相似文献   

Methodology/Approach: The paper uses social network analysis (SNA) tools to identify, map and analyze the AISs and the two-stage Heckman selection model. Combining qualitative and quantitative methods allows testing the differential effects of social networks on technology adoption.

Findings: We find weak innovation systems in the study area. Farmers are central in the social networks but have little to no influence in the innovation system perspective. Social network capital plays a critical role in improving adoption of improved farm technology.

Practical implication: Focal farmers are important actors disseminating farm technology. They should be supported by policies to interact more effectively with research and extension agents. Strengthening the role of social networking in the innovation system will enhance adoption of improved farm technology.

Theoretical implications: The inclusion of SNA indicators in the adoption model is a novel approach for quantifying the effect of the innovation system and contributes to understanding the roles of different actors. Further validation of the SNA indicators is needed for a comprehensive analysis of the innovation system.

Originality/value: The innovation system approach is useful for researchers and policy-makers by encouraging them to consider new innovation actors and relationships in technology development and dissemination. Combining quantitative and qualitative methods can help to identify starting points for policies to promote innovations among farmers.  相似文献   

Aims.

The aims of the study were to investigate whether the style of pupils with behaviour problems was different from that of children with no reported problems, and also to consider how pupils of different style manifested their problem behaviours.

Sample.

The sample comprised 83 male pupils aged 10‐18 years from two residential special schools.

Method.

The sample were given the Cognitive Styles Analysis to assess their positions on the Wholist‐Analytic and Verbal‐Imagery style dimensions. The pupil records of the special school pupils who were at the extreme of the style dimensions were also examined.

Results.

When their style characteristics were contrasted with a Comparison Sample of 413 12‐16‐year‐old males attending 10 secondary schools, the special school pupils had a significantly higher proportion of both Wholists and Verbalisers, than the Comparison Group. Further, the inspection of the records indicated that the types of social behaviour and behaviour problems exhibited varied with style, and particularly on the Wholist‐Analytic dimension.

Conclusion.

The results were considered to have implications for the origins and treatment of problem behaviour.  相似文献   

Design/methodology/approach: Individual interviews and focus group discussions were held with 24 farmers over 20 months. Observations were made of these farmers as they participated with eight agricultural and social scientists in a range of innovative experiences to learn about chicory and plantain establishment and management. These learning experiences were designed around evidence-informed educational pedagogies. Data sets were analyzed using NVivo to determine common themes of affordances and barriers to learning and actual practice changes.

Findings: The affordances for learning and practice change include belonging to a learning community, enhancing self-efficacy, engaging with scientists, seeing relative advantage, reinforcing and validating learning, supporting system’s integration and developing an identity as learners. Barriers to learning and practice change include issues of: trialability, complexity, compatibility and risk.

Practical implications: The importance of basing new models of extension around evidence-informed pedagogies known through educational research to promote learning and practice change.

Theoretical implications: Sociocultural theory and self-efficacy theories of learning are critical to the success of effective agricultural extension programs.

Originality: To date, little empirical research about the affordances and barriers for pastoral farmers’ learning has been based on contemporary educational research.  相似文献   

Design/methodology/approach: A stratified survey including 103 villages and 823 farmers was conducted in all districts of Haryana (India). Firstly, technical efficiency (TE) was modeled using biophysical data including grain yield, seeding rate, wheat varieties, tillage, sowing date, seed source, harvesting method and the application of fertilizer, herbicide and irrigation. The relationship between TE and social community factors such as farm size, farmer age, level of education and agricultural support programs was analyzed by regression tree.

Findings: TE was lower with the farmers who only have education to a primary standard. Farmers with high TE scores were mostly between 35 and 40 years of age, and a higher TE association was common for farmers who use technical publications. Social individual factors such as farmers’ views on the future of farming were also analyzed across different TE levels.

Practical implications: Farmers with lower TE are an obvious target for production improvement, particularly given the understanding that the overall production yield gap is small in Haryana.

Theoretical implications: Our conceptual framework shows a quantitative way to establish the socio-ecological linkage, and to identify the opportunities for changes in management with extension services leading to productivity improvement.

Originality/value: This paper provides a novel framework with detailed methodology to effectively identify the socio-economic factors that limit the biophysical production in an agricultural system.  相似文献   

Design/Methodology/Approach: Key barriers for engaging in participatory extension were identified using content analysis of semi-structured interviews, surveys and focus group discussion of 37 government agricultural workers along with participant observation and review of existing literature.

Findings: The majority of workers surveyed understood basic participatory extension principles and desired to use these approaches. Changing from traditional ‘top down’ extension to systems that engage with farmers' needs at the community level is made difficult due to the aging and poorly functioning Village Extension Worker (VEW) network. Thus, it is far easier for the research driven extension programmes to use technology transfer models.

Practical Implications: Participatory extension relies on strong relationship building and open communication between farmers, extension workers, researchers, interest groups and policy-makers. The Egyptian government must properly establish and resource the pivotal role of VEWs within the extension system to meet its strategic aims of modernising agriculture, developing food security and improving the livelihoods of rural inhabitants.

Originality/Value: This paper captures the unique perspectives of government research, extension and education workers involved in agricultural development at a time directly after the 2010 revolution, when they were able to more openly reflect on the past and present situations.  相似文献   

Design/methodology/approach: Using Conservation Agriculture (CA) as a case study, we qualitatively explore with 26 locally based agricultural researchers the context of CA research and promotion, including their perceptions on persistent research gaps and issues in closing them.

Findings: Respondents identified that CA was not yet a finished product, with concerns regarding the benefit, feasibility and relevance of CA implementation. They asserted that while further adaptation was required, they were unable to do this due to institutional constraints within their research, extension and policy contexts.

Practical implications: We find that CA continues to be considered a donor-driven intervention in its current form and requires substantial further adaptation to local contexts before researchers will deem it ready for farmer uptake. The five research gaps identified by respondents highlight practical areas where further adaptations must occur.

Theoretical implications: Our findings suggest a lack of participatory research and extension most likely reflects limited financial, human and social capital to implement more participatory approaches. Without addressing these capacities, widespread adoption of complex farming systems change appears unlikely.

Originality/Value: Whilst many studies have identified a need for local innovation to enable CA utilisation, few have qualitatively explored directly with local researchers the capacity of such systems to do so. We address this gap in the literature.  相似文献   

Design/Methodology/Approach: Semi-structured interviews with volunteers from different occupational groups in Bangladesh, and a phone survey with 227 respondents.

Findings: Each occupational group acted differently. Shop keepers, tillage service providers, agricultural input and machine dealers reached fairly small audiences. Tea stall owners had large, male audiences. Non-governmental organisations and community-based organisations, reached more women. The cable TV (dish-line) operators showed the videos on local TV, but some were reluctant to do so again. The Union Information Service Centres showed the videos and reached women viewers. Half of the official government extension agents surveyed also showed the videos publically.

Practical Implication: This video featured maize, wheat and rice seeding machinery. Because the machinery is complex and requires hands-on training, this first video aimed to expose tillage and sowing service providers and farmers to the machinery, without trying to teach them how to use it. But some farmers were so interested that they watched the video many times to learn more about the equipment. Before farmers and service providers decide to buy machinery for direct seeding, they still want to see and learn from demonstration plantings, to examine first-hand how the crop behaves when planted with the new equipment.

Originality/Value: Video can be an effective way of sharing high-quality information with a large audience, if properly distributed.  相似文献   

Design/Methodology/Approach: Peri-urban landscapes are important as they supply fresh fruit, vegetables, turf, ornamental plants and other farm products to the cities. In this study, the Hawkesbury–Nepean Catchment (HNC) was used as a case study and a number of farmers were selected to examine how they use the available technologies for irrigation scheduling to make better decisions for developing water management strategies on their farms. The farmers who participated in the study were mainly growing fruit, turf, vegetables, pasture, olive trees and cut flowers.

Findings: It was observed that a range of factors influenced correct irrigation scheduling decisions of farmers, including their limited understanding of the soil-water-plant relationship, costs of implementing soil-moisture monitoring technology and finding a date for irrigation activity that is compatible with their other farm tasks. It was also found that the farmers’ experiential knowledge played an important role in their irrigation scheduling decisions. The study indicated that irrigation scheduling approaches, which have a low labour requirement and are cost effective and easy to use would be helpful to farmers.

Practical Implications: The study highlighted that there are some irrigation management issues for research and extension that are specific to peri-urban farming and as such they need to be addressed to improve irrigation management and to cope with future water scarcity in urban and peri-urban landscapes.

Originality/Value: This is one of few studies that examine irrigation scheduling issues in a peri-urban context. The study has revealed that irrigation scheduling in reality cannot be an exact science, but it needs to accommodate various farmer constraints in field situations and may have implication for extension activities in peri-urban and other regions.  相似文献   

Design/methodology/approach: By applying SDT, we developed two measures. The first one assessed the degree to which the three basic human psychological needs motivate farmers to engage in CDP, and the second concerned farmers’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to seek knowledge through participation in CDP. Using data from two samples of farmers, we examined the effect of SDT needs and the influence of the different regulatory styles on individuals’ decision to participate in CDP.

Findings: Our findings indicated that participation in CDP is guided by the most internal forms of human motivation (identified, integrated, and intrinsic motivation), and that deficits in the needs for autonomy and competence predict farmers’ decision to participate in CDP.

Practical implications: These results stress the importance of designing CDP that promote self-directedness, emphasise choice rather than rewards, and generate the conditions that support farmers’ autonomy.

Theoretical implications: Our work suggests that the integration of social psychology into extension/education research can paint a more detailed picture of the way farmers interact with extension/education services.

Originality/value: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that uses an SDT framework to examine farmers’ motivation toward participation in CDP. Hence, this research opens a new realm for extension/education research, while it also contributes to the SDT literature by examining the role of self-determined motivation in a different life domain.  相似文献   

Design/Methodology/Approach: We calculated information scores to measure channel preference from a randomly selected sample of farmers: 285 in Tamale, Ghana and 300 in Kakamega, Kenya. Using t-tests we compared the information score differences of different channels between farmers who adopted Integrated Soil Fertility Management and those who did not.

Findings: The highest information scores were observed for radio along the entire value chain for both locations. However, farmers in Tamale prefered interpersonal channels for processing information. Radio and farmer field days had the highest rankings for production information at both locations. Radio, workshops and interpersonal channels (traders and neighbours/friends/relatives) were best-bet channels for marketing and procesing information.

Practical implication: Extension agents should place more emphasis on channels such as radio, farmer field days, and workshops as they may offer more efficient delivery of information packages at all levels, whilst recognizing the central role of interpersonal channels.

Theoretical implication: The nexus between the uses and gratification, adoption, diffusion of innovations theories and the collaborative communication theory on one hand, and the agricultural product value chain framework on the other, is highlighted. Farmers’ preference for information channels is not predicated on the stage of the value chain.

Originality/Value: In the current context of weak agricultural knowledge and innovation systems in African agriculture, agricultural producers are poorly informed about the current innovations. This study furnishes empirical evidence on the best-bet information channels to be used by extension workers and change agents to disseminate and communicate system innovations.  相似文献   

_____ comprehensive and unified;

_____ able to take into account the particular possibilities of individual adult educators; and

_____ easily adjustable to the particular needs within the community.

Such a scheme can only be realized through the application of a modular structure. A scheme like this is being developed at Gwent College of Higher Education for a professional training programme which will give a Certificate in Continuing Education, conferring full teacher status in adult and further education. This development is used to illustrate the points the author wants to make. The development of a programme on such a scheme raises considerable structural and methodological problems, which are discussed and compared with what is done elsewhere.  相似文献   

—Robert Ardrey (1972), The Territorial Imperative, Fontana

London, p. 257  相似文献