DIALLA, BASGA EMILE; PHD
IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY, 1992
ANTHROPOLOGY, CULTURAL (0326); EDUCATION, SOCIOLOGY OF (0340); EDUCATION,
EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY (0525); EDUCATION, AGRICULTURAL (0517); EDUCATION,
ADULT AND CONTINUING (0516)
In the West African country of Burkina Faso, soil erosion has long been a concern.
The national
government has perceived soil erosion a problem for over a quarter of a century.
Although institutional
support and practices to control the severity of soil erosion are available,
attempts to address the problem
have met with limited success. This limited success may be related to lack of
consideration of the local
indigenous knowledge as a restraining factor. Farmers may be reluctant to adopt
conservation practices
unfamiliar to them. This study, conducted in two villages in the northwestern
Burkina Faso investigates
the important role of indigenous knowledge of soil as it affects farmers' conservation
behavior. The
prominent role of indigenous knowledge is assessed among other important variables
suggested by the
adoption/diffusion literature such as structural and institutional factors,
farmers' personal characteristics,
their specific knowledge of soil erosion problems, attitudes toward risk and
goals in farming. Thus, a
modified adoption/diffusion model was tested, under the guidance of risk and
balance theories. Risk is
tied to the uncertainty that surrounds any unfamiliar innovation, and balance
theory to the influence of
significant other individuals or groups within the local social system. Indigenous
knowledge was found to
have limited effect on farmers' adoption behavior as well as farmers' knowledge
of soil erosion problems,
their attitudes toward risk and goals in farming. Structural and institutional
factors were found to have a
stronger effect on farmers' conservation behavior, followed by farmers' access
to information. Also, the
findings did not support risk and balance theories, as farmers' willingness
to take risks and the influence
of local individuals or groups had little effect on farmers' adoption behavior.
Finally, the overall results
provided little support to the modified classical adoption/diffusion model.
Social
Systems Simulation Group
P.O. Box 6904 San Diego, CA 92166-0904 Roland Werner, Principal Phone/FAX (619) 660-1603 |