The Adoption of Agricultural Technology - Food Security Group

For instance, a survey may show that the average farm size for adopters is4.7 ha, while the average farm size for non-adopters is 4.2 ha. Dependingon the variability in the sample and the sample size, this difference mightbe shown to be statistically significant. It is probably not surprising thatfarm size exerts some influence on a farmer's adoption decision, but it isdoubtful if we would want to give much emphasis in this case to the factthat adopters tend to operate farms that are about 10% larger than those ofnon-adopters. The information probably is not useful to researchers (forrefining their recommendations) or to policymakers (in understanding thespread or impact of new technology). If the adopters tended to have farmsthat were twice as large as those of the non-adopters, on the other hand, wewould have to begin thinking about better targeting or presentation of thetechnology.If two factors are associated, there are a number of ways of explaining theobserved association. Tn most cases, the analysis of adoption surveys willlook for factors that may cause or contribute to the adoption (or nonadoption)of a technology. There is no standard method for doing this typeof interpretation, and the researcher must be guided by his or herknowledge of the data and of the farming system. Further detail on thistype of survey analysis can be found in Rosenberg (1968).Someways ofinterpretingand refiningtherelationshipbetweentwo variables inan adoptionstudyJust because there is a relationship between two variables does not meanthat one causes the other. Tn studying adoption, we try to identify factorsthat influence a farmer's decision to use a technology. The analysis shouldprovide a clear and logical explanation for the contribution that a particularfactor makes to the adoption decision. This requires a careful analysis of therelationship between variables. The following examples show how therelationship between two variables (A and B) can be understood better byincluding a third variable (C) in the'analysis.1. Identifying specific components of the causal variableTn some cases a relationship may seem reasonable, but it is possible tofind a more specific explanation. For example, farm size (A) may berelated to the adoption of contour hedgerows for erosion control (B). Thesmaller the farm, the more likely the adoption. What is it about farm sizethat would influence the adoption of hedgerows? If we find that smallfarms have more family labor available per hectare (C), and that there isalso a strong relationship between labor availability and hedgerowadoption, it may be sensible to emphasize this factor in our analysis ofthe data.71