agex

• Innovation


  An idea, or practice, or technology perceived as new by a person
• Adoption


  The process by which a person is exposed to, evaluates, and accept/practice or reject a particular innovation. It is the decision to make full use of the technology as the best option possible
• Characteristics of an Innovation that Determine its Adoption

  • Relative Advantage
  • Compatibility
  • Complexity
  • Trialability
  • Observability
• Relative Advantage


  The degree to which a farmer recognizes an innovation as better than the idea or practice he/she is currently practicing
• Compatibility


  The degree to which a farmer perceives the innovation/new idea to be consistent with his socio-cultural values and beliefs, and with previously introduced ideas and felt needs
• Complexity


  The degree to which a farmer can understand and follow an innovation
• Trialability


  The degree to which an innovation can be experimented or duplicated on a small-scale basis
• Observability


  The degree to which the results of an innovation can easily be observed by the farmers
• Diffusion process


  Defined as the spreading of information from a source to its intended or unintended receivers or users and the stages through which adoption passes. A process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social system
• Stages in the adoption process before farmers adopt new technology

  1. Awareness

  2. Interest

  3. Evaluation

  4. Trial

  5. Adoption
• The farmer can also reject the innovation based on his/her observation and assessment
• The five stages may not always occur in specified order, the trial stage may be skipped and evaluation stage may occur throughout the whole process
• Adoption may not always be the end process but more information may be needed to confirm, reinforce or switch decision
• Stages in the Adoption Process (Further Explanation)

  1. Awareness

  2. Interest

  3. Evaluation

  4. Trial

  5. Adoption
• Innovation-Decision Process Theory


  • KNOWLEDGE - Stage when the individual learns of the existence of the innovation and gains some understanding of its function
  • PERSUASION - Individual forms a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the innovation
  • DECISION - Individual engages in activities that lead to a choice between adoption and rejection of the innovation
  • IMPLEMENTATION - Individual puts an innovation into use
  • CONFIRMATION - Individual seeks further reinforcement of his decision or reverses his decision if he found conflicting messages about the innovation
• Innovativeness


  It is the degree to which an individual is relatively earlier in adopting new ideas that the other members of the system. It is the best single indicator of modernization
• Modernization


  It is defined as the process by which individuals change from a traditional way of life to a more complex, technologically advanced, and rapidly changing style of life
• Individual Innovativeness Theory


  This theory states that individuals who are risk takers or otherwise innovative will adopt an innovation earlier in the continuum of adoption/diffusion
• Categories of Adopters


  • Innovators
  • Early adopters
  • Early majority
  • Late majority
  • Laggards
• Innovators


  • Venturesome, the first people in a locality to adopt an innovation/new idea, have larger farms, higher net worth, more educated and informed, highly respected and have prestige, takes calculated risks, experiments
• Early Adopters


  • Respectable, follow the innovators, usually younger than average, have higher education than those slower to adopt, participate actively in community organizations and programs, more informed, reads papers and magazines
• Early Majority


  • Deliberate, slightly above average in age, education and farming experience, not elected leaders but are active in the community, most likely informal leaders and have limited resources than innovators and early adopters, adopts new ideas after they are convinced of its value as seen from early adopters
• Late Majority


  • Skeptical, make up a large block of farmers in the community, have less education and older than the early majority, less active in associations and organizations, skeptical about new information and ideas, hesitant to discard old knowledge and techniques learned, adopt a practice only when it is majority by the community
• Laggards


  • Traditional, last people to adopt an innovation, suspicious of the innovations, the innovators, and the change agent, very conservative, usually the oldest, least educated and wealthy, not risk takers, usually believes in superstitious and indigenous knowledge, decision to adopt depends on their past experiences
• Strategies to Effect Adoption

  • Extension Worker Intervention
  • Progressive Farmer Strategy
  • Mass Marketing
  • Follower-farmer Strategy
  • Selective Farmer-to-Farmer
• Extension Worker Intervention


  Extension workers are valuable agents for quick diffusion and adoption of innovations. As "carrier" of information, they must possess important traits such as credibility, because of good understanding of farmers and his problems, nature of technology, extension methods, research results, etc.
• Progressive Farmer Strategy


  Extension agents usually are in direct contact with progressive farmers from whom innovations diffuse. Use of progressive farmers has its attraction to extension workers especially if they are working under the pressure of targets (e.g. fertilizers to be distributed, areas to be planted with new varieties, etc.)
• Mass Marketing


  Uses advertising to reach each member of the target market directly. Involves huge communication systems to give info regarding product availability to consumers. Feedback data to producers re consumers' wants. Can create broad public awareness of critical issues. Can be used to introduce new product (e.g. new brand of chemical fertilizer), the modification of existing ones (e.g. organic composting), restricted consumption of inputs (e.g. use of herbicides), and promotion of change in existing institutions. Requires careful design and delivery of products to properly identified and analyzed homogeneous target markets
• Selective Farmer-to-Farmer


  Knowledge or info acquired by a farmer is transferred to another farmer through informal discussion in field and villages. Conversation can also happen during leisure time and on social and religious occasions. Relatives, friends, and others listen to and participate in the discussions
• Explanations for Rejection/Adoption of Technology

  • 'INDIVIDUAL-BLAME' Hypothesis
  • 'SYSTEM-BLAME' Hypothesis
  • 'PRO-INNOVATION' Bias
• Framework for Sustainable Development

  • Economically viable
  • Ecologically sound
  • Socially just and humane
  • Culturally acceptable/appropriate
  • Grounded in holistic science
  • Resilient and low risk
  • Biodiversity-oriented
  • Productive
  • Participatory
• Sustainable Agriculture


  Sustainable development is maintaining or prolonging the productive capacity of the natural resource base to meet human needs. It is the conservation of the natural resource base and the orientation of technological and institutional change that ensures the attainment of a continued satisfaction of human needs for present and future generations
• Components of Agriculture Development

  • Governance
  • Research
  • Extension/Education
  • Marketing
  • Production
  • Supply
• Community


  An organization of families and individuals, settled in a fairly compact and contiguous geographical area, with significant element of common life
• Elements of community


  • Manners
  • Customs
  • Tradition
  • Mode of Speech
• Manners


  A way of doing something
• Customs


  The social convention carried on by tradition
• Tradition


  Handing down orally of customs, beliefs and others from generation to generation
• Mode of Speech


  The language of a certain people or group
• Characteristics of community


  • Common System of Values
  • Normatively defined relation
  • Interdependence
  • Recognition of belongings
  • System of stratification
  • Locality