Appendix B Adoption of new agricultural practices
B. 1
Introduction
Extensive literature about the adoption of technologies in agriculture exist in the international context and in relation to Australia including GBR catchments. In this section the broad influences on adoption are discussed before the discussion is focused on the GBR and the BBB.
B. 2 What influences adoption broadly?
Pannell et al.( 2011) note that adoption is a learning process and as such is continuous and following the sequence of:
� awareness of a problem or opportunity( including understanding of the relative advantage that adoption may present 12);
� non-trial evaluation( information collection); � trial evaluation( if small scale trials are not available, the rate of adoption decreases significantly);
� adoption( if the trial is successful, adoption might be ramped up); � review and modification; and � non or dis-adoption.
The learning process is influenced by the characteristics of the landholders such as the families 13 and broader social environment as well as the characteristics of the innovation( Pannell et al., 2011). In their initial discussions, Pannell et al.,( 2011) refer to agricultural practices. However, it is recognized that the adoption of conservation practices may be less likely to follow these norms because they are relatively more complex then agricultural practices, and / or the benefits are less observable.( Pannell et al., 2011) also suggest that a number of social processes also influence adoption. These are:
� the existence and strength of social networks; � the physical proximity of other adopters( due to observability and trialability); � distance of property to an information source; � history of relationships between landholders and those with the information;
12
Impact on short term costs, profits in the medium to long term, impacts on other parts of the system within which it is embedded, adjustment costs to facilitate adoption, impact on riskiness, compatibility with existing technologies, beliefs, values and practices, complexity, government policies, impact on family lifestyle, self-image, environmental credibility.
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