SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF FARMERS ATTITUDE TOWARDS AGRICULTURAL INNOVATIONS AND ITS INFLUENCE ON SUGARCANE PRODUCTIVITY

Abstract

The foremost aim of the current research was to investigate whether attitudinal factors towards modern agricultural technologies have a positive impact on productivity or not. The study was designed and carried out in the Central Valley of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, with a sample size of 384 farmers chosen using a multistage random sampling technique. The data were collected using an interview schedule and evaluated into bi-variate and multivariate results, while chi-square test and Kendall's Tau-c statistics were used to determine the relationship between attitudes toward agricultural innovation and sugarcane productivity. At the multivariate level, the association was checked between variables while controlling the family socioeconomic status of the respondents. Findings of the study revealed that the sugarcane productivity decreased when the farmers use old traditional means of farming, do not take the risk of new technologies and other inputs, the influence and opinion lead inside the communities do not make the favorable attitude of the farmers towards innovations, and or due to illiteracy and lack of knowledge they cannot operate modern technology on their fields. Through educating, imparting technical skills, and through influential community leaders, the favorable attitude of farmers towards innovative agricultural technologies can be formed which can solve the solution of food crises in the country.