IRANIAN AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION AND EDUCATION JOURNAL
Year:2021 | Volume:17 | Issue:1|Papers Count:9

Lack of attention to the components of the organization can affect the success of e-businesses due to this fact that the organization as one of the most important elements of the business model is very important to determine the level of cooperation, use of technologies and determine the short-term and long-term plans. The aim of this study was to identify the organizational components of the e-business model in Moghan Plain. Accordingly, all experts of the Jihad agricultural organizations as well as the experts of extension services centers were studied by complete enumeration method (80 people) in different counties including Germi, Bile-Savar, and Pars Abad. Data were collected through a researcher-made questionnaire that its face validity was confirmed using the views of academic experts and its reliability was confirmed as a pre-test by calculating Cronbach's alpha. Data were analyzed using second-order factor analysis technique. The organizational dimension of e-business was considered in the form of three constructs of structural flexibility, operational flexibility, and strategic flexibility. The results showed that the strategic flexibility was considered by experts as the most important structure. Generally, the results of this study suggested that the businesses need a short-term plan to advance the cooperation processes and solve their problems, on the other hand, they also need a long-term plan to be able to act with a contingency approach in the facing of the problems and react quickly and accurately to solving the problems.

This research was carried out in rural areas of Golestan province. The target population of the research includes 7, 950 cotton farmers in Golestan province. The sample size was 386 of cotton farmers. Counties. The required data were collected by a researcher-made questionnaire. The face and content validity of the research questionnaire was confirmed based on the views of the Research Scientific Committee and experts from the Cotton Researches Center. Reliability was calculated and confirmed by calculating Alpha-Cronbach for different sections of the questionnaire between 0. 70 and 0. 81. The results showed that all the six components mentioned in the research conceptual model has been verified based on field data (appropriate fit of the model) and these components include: income/financial dependency on cotton cultivation, "occupational dependency (perceived the employability of cotton cultivation)", "social/spatial dependency on cotton cultivation", "formal and informal business network (social capital related to cotton cultivation)", "business capability (perceived the ease/feasibility of cotton cultivation)" and "positive perspective toward cotton business (long-term constructive approach to cotton cultivation)" which have a significant relationship with the main construct,dependency on cotton production as the main source of livelihood. The results of dependency classifying showed that 73. 06% of farmers have a high dependency on cotton cultivation for their livelihood, while 18. 13% have a moderate dependency and 8. 81% have a low dependency.

Providing energy for pumping water to pressurized irrigation networks in the agricultural sector on the one hand, environmental crises and global concerns about the consequences and effects of fossil fuels on the environment on the other hand, have led to the necessity of changing mental patterns about the use of clean and renewable energy. In the meantime, solar energy is a response to the challenges posed. The purpose of this study was to analyze the farmers’,behavioral intention towards the use of solar cells in irrigation systems. The statistical population was included (N= 7172) irrigated farmers who were selected (n=365) farmers as a sample group using the table of Krejcie and Morgan. The research instrument was a researcher-made questionnaire which its content validity was confirmed by a panel of agricultural extension and education experts and discriminant validity (AVE). Also, its reliability, using Cronbach's alpha and the Composite reliability indices was obtained in the optimal range. Data processing in both descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSSWin22 and LISREL8. 8 software and achieve goals with structural equation modeling was conducted. According to the analyses, a significant correlation between the variables of “, behavioral intention”, , “, attitude”, , “, subjective norm”, , “, perceived behavioral control”, , “, perceived ease of use”,and “, perceived usefulness”,were observed. Also, based on the results of modeling, the independent and mediating variables of the study had a significant effect on the farmers’,behavioral intentions. Those five variables explained 64 percent of the total variance of farmers' behavioral intentions in using solar cells.

Incorrect use of chemical fertilizers has had significant consequences on the quality of the environment as well as human welfare. Therefore, limiting its release may be achieved by improving fertilizer management. In this regard, farmers, as the main actors and decision makers in the agricultural sector, will have the task of limiting the use of nitrogen fertilizer and thereby reducing its effects. Therefore, understanding farmers' actions is essential to identify the types of policies that can effectively promote social and technological change. Because developing behavior and promoting the knowledge of environmentalists is an important issue for policymakers, advocates of green businesses and other stakeholders interested in adopting and enhancing environmental protection behavior. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the behavior of farmers in Ramshir region regarding nitrogen fertilizer application and its determinants factors. To achieve the research goal, two theories of normative activation and environmental behavior prediction were used. The data were collected through survey technique using a structured questionnaire. Validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by faculty members of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan. Reliability of questionnaire was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha test. The sampling method was based on systematic random sampling. Based on the Kerjesi and Morgan table, a sample of 200 farmers was selected among farmers who had received fertilizer from Ramshir Agricultural Jihad Management Organization in year 2018-2019. The results of the study showed that in the normative activation theory, effectiveness, responsibility, awareness of consequences and subjective norms explain ethical norm variable and the behavior of farmers is significantly explained by the ethical norm variable. In the environmental behavior prediction theory, the variable of intentions was explained by awareness of action strategies and personality factors. Based on the results of the research, suggestions were presented to improve the implementation of the policies in order to better use nitrogen fertilizers.

Sustainable agricultural development requires the use of skilled and expert human resources in agriculture. Student farms are sites of agricultural production and marketing. The purpose of this study was to analyze challenges facing student farms and strategies for development of such farms. The population for this study consisted of students who were members of student farm in College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Razi University in the academic year 2019-2020 (N=140). The sample size determined via Krejcie and Morgan’, s table (n=103). The sampling method was random stratified sampling. The main instrument was a questionnaire that its validity and reliability were confirmed by the panel of experts and sequential Alpha coefficient (α, =0. 85). Semi-structured interviews and content analysis were used to identify the strategies to develop student farms. Based on the findings, the average challenges of student farms was above moderate level. Exploratory factor analysis revealed the most important of challenges as economic, educational, administrative-managerial and human resources. The Mann-Whitney test findings did not show significant difference between the viewpoints of male and female students regarding the challenges of student farms. Based on Kruskal-Wallis test, it was found that there was no significant difference between educational degrees and fields of agricultural students towards the challenges of student farms. Finally, some strategies are proposed to develop the student farms.

Sericulture is one of the agricultural activities that causes employment and empowerment of the villagers. Guilan province is important centers of sericulture in the country. This study, investigates the sustainability of sericulture industry in Guilan province. In this regard, the indicators of social cohesion, social participation and sustainability of the social communication network of sericulture industry actors and key strategies for their improvement and promotion were analyzed. The general paradigm of the research is a mixed of concurrenttriangulation mixed methods design. In the quantitative part of the research, out of 9793 sericulture farmers in the province, 365 were selected by multi-stage sampling method. Quantitative data were collected through a researcher-made questionnaire. Also, the face and content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by the group of experts and its reliability was confirmed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient with the amount 0. 81. In the qualitative section, 12 sericulture actors were selected using purposive sampling (snowball) and interviewed. The results of the network analysis of the actors using UCINET software showed that their social cohesion is weak to moderate, social participation is moderate and the stability of social relations is good. Qualitative data analysis also showed that government support, income-generating job opportunities, organization and coordination among actors are the three key strategies to improve and enhance social cohesion, social participation and the sustainability of social relations in achieving in economizing sustainable sericulture in Guilan province.

Recently, slow adoption of chemical pesticides alternatives and the increasing of pests has greatly increased the health risk potential in pesticides consumption among farmers. Therefore, this descriptive survey study aimed to determine the most important predictors of health risk in pesticides consumption among potato growers in Ardabil province, Iran. A sample of 370 potato growers were chosen among Ardabil province potato growers (N= 4876), according to the table of Bartlett et al. using multi-stage sampling method. The results revealed that farmers overused in different chemical pesticides and the most farmers (35. 7%) were at a high level of health risk. Chlorpyrifos and Trifluralin had the highest level of pesticides overuse, while Chlorpyrifos and Metribuzin were the most hazardous pesticides for health risk. According to the decision tree model and calculation of the composite index, farm size, social norm, perceived chemical pesticides risk and history of participation in training courses, were the most important predictors of health risk index, respectively. Training, technical and financial support for small-scale farmers to replace hazardous chemical pesticides,receiving continuous educational feedback from farmers' perception of pesticide overuse hazard and improving social norms with the local leaders’,support and skilled farmers can reduce the health risk of farmers in chemical pesticides consumption.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors influencing economic poverty of rural female-headed households. The statistical population of this study were consisted those rural female-headed households who were under support of Assistance Committee and Well-being Organization of Kermanshah County. Data were collected by a researcher-made questionnaire. The results of regression analysis showed that the variables of having skills in a job, financial status of the paternal family, lack of initial capital, level of familiarity with the labor market and the presence of educated unemployed in the household have the greatest effect on the economic poverty of rural female-headed households. In general, it can be argued that almost half of the female headed households are housewives and do not have any jobs or sources of income. Therefore, it is recommended that the authorities and custodians provide the room for creating home-based jobs and jobs that do not require much skills, and also provide conditions for these women to be able to take care of household responsibilities while working.