7.2 Factors that have been shown to influence adoption
Studies which pull together a large number of case studies are helpful because they synthesise knowledge , detect trends and provide generic insights into relationships .
7.2.1 Adoption of sustainable land management practices in Australia A qualitative study summarising the Australian adoption literature by Nelson et al . ( 2004 ) showed that a large number of socio-economic factors and considerations ( including farm size , off-farm income and farm equity ) could be statistically linked to the adoption of sustainable farming practices in Australia ( Table 9 ). While an explanatory link to adoption decision was provided , the indicators themselves could only be nominally linked to adoption .
Table 9 . Selected farm indicators for the adoption of conservation practices . Source : |
Adapted from BRS ( 2001 ). |
Type of indicator |
Linkage to adoption |
Expected impact on adoption |
Age of property owner / manager |
Desire to remain on property , environmental attitudes |
Negative |
Formal education of owner / manager
Skills ; environmental attitudes ; desire to remain on property ; information
Positive
Years of management experience |
Skills ; habits |
Ambiguous |
Farm family with dependent |
Financial capacity ; desire to |
Positive |
children |
remain |
|
Farm equity ratio |
Financial capacity ; security |
Positive |
Farm profit at full equity |
Desire to remain |
Positive |
Total farm family income |
Financial capacity ; skills |
Positive |
Farm family off-farm income |
Financial capacity |
Positive |
Farm cash income |
Financial capacity ; desire to remain ; security |
Positive |
Pannell et al ( 2006 ) conducted a qualitative assessment of the Australian adoption literature . They concluded that innovations such as BMPs are more likely to be adopted when they are perceived to be superior to existing practices , particularly in economic terms , and are easy to test and learn about prior to adoption .
They pointed out that adoption is a process . This process can be broken into four phases :
• awareness of the problem or opportunity ,
• non-trial evaluation — which is where learning from demonstration sites comes into effect ,
• trial evaluation — small-scale implementation and experimenting , and
• adoption — which can range from upscaling a trial to full-scale implementation .
Adoption takes place in a social , economic and psychological sphere , and BMPs are not simple innovations . Adopting BMPs ultimately affects the entire production system on a property . This makes BMPs risky and the decision to adopt is consequently a significant and complex matter . Any significant decision is likely to be socially shared and therefore needing to support a heterogeneous set of goals by those involved in the decision making process .
Pannell et al ( 2006 ) also pointed out that dealing with risky decisions with important consequences is a stressful experience for most people and can compound the state of stress that many landholders are experiencing when they have , for example , farm debt or when there is a drought . Consequently , it needs to be appreciated that there are legitimate reasons for non-adoption .
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