Differentiation and survival among North Carolina smallholders: An empirical perspective on the Lenin‐Chayanov debate

Abstract

This article addresses theoretical issues concerning differentiation and class formation using North American data. It explores how socio‐economic characteristics vary and impact survival in agriculture. The study is based on panel data collected from a sample of smallholders in three Piedmont North Carolina counties. Factor analysis reveals five major dimensions of differentiation: scale, household labour, off‐farm family labour and income, demographic characteristics, and land tenure. An index of propensity to survive in agriculture, constructed from three waves of panel data is regressed upon five indices measuring the underlying dimensions of differentiation. Land tenure manifests a statistically significant net effect on survival in agriculture. These empirical results support theoretical arguments in favour of integrating analyses of socio‐economic and demographic differentiation in the study of agricultural enterprises.

Notes

Associate Professor in Sociology, North Carolina State University. Raleigh, NC 27695–8107, USA;

Senior Investigator, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599–8040, USA;

Research Analyst, Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.