This study was an investigation of the effect of the nature of messages conveyed between extension officers and farmers on the adoption of Irish potato farming. The problem of this study was that past studies had limited focus on the nature of extension messages conveyed between extension officers and farmers on adoption of Irish potato farming, hence a gap that demands specific studies to be carried out in order to fill it. The study’s general objective was to determine the effect of the nature of messages conveyed between extension officers and farmers on the adoption of Irish potato farming. The target population for this descriptive study comprised farmers from four sub-locations (Kimbo, Gathuine, Kiamiogo, Mburugiti) of Kibirichia Ward in Meru County and all the three extension officers involved in the production of Irish potato crop. From the sampling frame, respondents were selected using purposive sampling. Farmers who took part in focus group discussions were selected using homogeneous sampling. Total population sampling method was used to take the total population of the three extension officers that train Irish potato farmers in the four sub-locations in Kibirichia Ward. One focus group discussion and one in-depth interview were conducted from each sub-location in Kibirichia Ward. Using qualitative methods in data analysis, focus group and interview data was transcribed, coded and categorized into relevant themes and sub-themes and possible and plausible explanations of the findings drawn. Findings of this study revealed extension messages contained information, ideas and technologies on soil testing, seed varieties, spacing, weeding, earthing-up, pesticides, fertilizer and manure application, crop rotations, diseases and harvesting. Farmers’ comprehension of most extension messages led to the high adoption of Irish potato farming in Kibirichia Ward. The researcher recommended that there is need to find the effect of the nature of messages conveyed between extension officers and farmers on the rate of adoption on Irish potato farming.
Agbamu, J. U. (2006). Essentials of agricultural communication in Nigeria. Lagos: Malthouse Press Ltd.
Age, A. I., Obinne, C. P. O., & Demenongu, T. S. (2012). Communication for sustainable rural and agricultural development in Benue State, Nigeria. Sustainable Agriculture Research, 1(1), 118–129. https://doi.org/10.5539/sar.v1n1p118
Aker, J. C. (2011). Dial “A” for agriculture: A review of information and communication technologies for agricultural extension in developing countries. Agricultural Economics, 42(6), 631–647. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1574-0862.2011.00545.x
Anaeto, F. C., Asiabaka, C. C., Nnadi, F. N., Ajaero, J. O., Aja, O. O., Ugwoke, F. O., Ukpongson, M. U., & Onweagba, A. E. (2012). The role of extension officers and extension services in the development of agriculture in Nigeria. Wudpecker Journal of Agricultural Research, 1(6), 180–185. Retrieved from http://pdoaj.com/pdf-files/agr/194/180-185 Vol 1 issue 6 July 2012.pdf
Bachhav, N. B. (2012). Information needs of the rural farmers: A study from Maharashtra, India: A survey. Library Philosophy and Practice, 866. Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/866 [Accessed July 20, 2013].
Bagi, F. S., & Bagi, S. K. (1989). A model of farm-level demand for extension information. North Central Journal of Agricultural Economics, 11(2), 297–307.
Bembridge, T. J. (1991). The practice of agricultural extension: A training manual. Development Bank of Southern Africa: Halfway House.
Benokraitis, N. V. (2016). Introduction to Sociology. (4th ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
Birner, R., & Anderson, J. R. (2007). How to make agricultural extension demand-driven? The Case of India’s agricultural extension policy. IFPRI Discussion Paper 00729, (November).
Birr, T. (2012). Communication: The process of creating shared meaning. Retrieved from https://thefoxyfiveexplainsitall.wordpress.com/2012/09/14/communicationthe-process-of-creating-shared-meaning/
Burgoon, J. K., Guerrero, L. K., & Floyd, K. (2010). Nonverbal communication. New York: Pearson Education Inc.
Campbell, D. A., & Barker, C. (1998). Selecting appropriate content and methods in programme delivery. In B. E. Swanson, R. P. Bentz, & A. J. Sofranko (Eds.), Improving agricultural extension. A reference manual (2nd ed.). Rome.
Chi, T., & Yamada, R. (2002). Factors affecting farmers’ adoption of technologies in farming system: A case study in Omon district, Can Tho province, Mekong Delta. Omonrice, 10, 94–100. Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/f62f/b7147568c61610d4ad6b6de48f14a73f6f83.pdf
DeVito, J. A. (2010). Essentials of Human communication (7th ed.). New York: Person Education.
DeVito, J. A. (2015). Human communication: The basic course (13th ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education Limited.
Ergen, E. (2010). Workplace Communication?: A case study on informal communication network within an organization, (November), 1–14. Retrieved from http://www.ergen.gr/files/WorkplaceCommunicationInformalCommunicationFramework.pdf
FAO. (2003). Addressing extension and training needs of farmers with physical disabilities: A case study of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Rome. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/tempref/GI/Reserved/FTP_FaoRlc/old/prior/desrural/extension/pdf/iran1.pdf
FAO. (2008). International year of the potato 2008: New light on a hidden treasure. Rome. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/potato-2008/pdf/IYPbook-en.pdf
Federman, M. (2004). What is the Meaning of the Medium is the Message? Retrieved from http://individual.utoronto.ca/markfederman/article_mediumisthemessage.htm
Gabbott, M., & Hogg, G. (2001). The role of nonverbal communication in service encounters: A conceptual framework. Journal of Marketing and Management, 17(1–2), 5–26. https://doi.org/10.1362/026725701257140
Hunt, J. U. (2006). Defining effective message. Technical Assistance Bulletin. Washington. D.C. Centre for Sustainable Agricultural Policy (CSAP).
Kabungo, C. V. D. (2008). Evaluation of Irish potat
In-Text Citation: (Kigatiira, Mberia, & Ngula, 2018)
To Cite this Article: Kigatiira, K. K., Mberia, H. K., & Ngula, K. (2018). The Effect of the Nature of Messages Conveyed Between the Extension Officers and Farmers on the Adoption of Irish Potato Farming in Meru County. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(4), 388–403.
Copyright: © 2018 The Author(s)
Published by Human Resource Management Academic Research Society (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode
