Dear JAEE colleagues,
It is hard to believe we are publishing the last issue of 2019. It has been a rewarding and educational experience becoming Editor-in-Chief of JAEE a year ago. One sees that hard work and long process that goes from submission, checking all manuscripts, appointing editors, assigning reviewers, following up with reviewers, conducing reviews, making recommendations, revising, and finally deciding on manuscripts. There is a dedicated group of people making all this happen, and we recognize these efforts that allow for our scholarly work that advances our profession.
This issue has five articles spanning from developing a psychometric scale to perceptions of farmers and adolescents in Ireland, from educational farms to a review of California’s extension contribution.
The first article, by Fernando Landini and Maite Beramendi, is about the ‘Construction and Validation of a Psychometric Scale to Assess Extension Agents’ Beliefs about Extension and Innovation.’ The authors found that the proposed scale was a good fit with internal consistency. Five factors were identified: Dialogue and horizontal coordination; Transfer of technology; Blame on farmers; Participatory, farmer-led extension; and Self-critical attitude. This research results in an instrument to assess extensionists’ beliefs about innovation and extension.
The next article, by Andy Dunne, Anne Markey, and Jim Kinsella, is entitled ‘Examining the Reach of Pluralised Agricultural Advisory Services and Farmers’ Perceptions of their Quality: The Case of County Laois in Ireland.’ The researchers used a structured questionnaire to better understand extension interaction in an Irish county case. They found approximately one-third of farmers were not using extension services, one-third were using public services, and one-third were using private services. Farmers rated the private services as higher quality.
Remaining in Ireland, the next article is ‘Careers in Dairy Farming: Adolescents’ Perceptions and Attitudes’ by Marion Beecher, Monica Gorman, Paidi Kelly, and Brendan Horan. The authors used occupational choice theory to guide a questionnaire-based survey with Irish youth regarding their attitudes and perceptions about dairy farming. They found that parents had great influence but that studying agricultural science also contributed towards considering dairy farming. The findings point to opportunities to influence awareness and attitudes of youth and their parents about career possibilities in dairy farming.
Maria Bonaventura Forleo and Nadia Palmieri provide ‘The Potential for Developing Educational Farms: A SWOT Analysis from a Case Study.’ The article identifies strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats of educational farms using a case study approach in Italy. They found that strengths of educational farms included strong motivation and connection with agritourism activities. Weaknesses were the small size, unskilled staff, lack of structured educational pathways, and limited profitability. Opportunities included the richness of rural landscapes, environmental resources, typical food products, and a growing demand for educational tourism. Threats included the absence of regional networks of farms.
Finally, Ariel Dinar, Diti Chatterjee, and Gloria Gonzalez-Rivera present ‘The Contribution of the University of California Cooperative Extension to California’s Agricultural Production.’ Following the 100-year anniversary of the United States Cooperative Extension System, they thought it a good time to evaluate the contribution of California’s extension services to the state’s agricultural production. They found a positive impact of Californian extension in terms of the value of agricultural sales of crops and livestock, with policy implications to consider the entire agricultural system.
Please enjoy the articles and see how they can enrich your own research and practice. I look forward to additional manuscripts that build on the existing theory in extension, education, and competence for rural innovation and transformation.