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Staying in Touch through Extension: An Analysis of Farmers' Use of Alternative Extension Information Products

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 January 2015

Lauren E. Jones ,
Florian Diekmann  and
Marvin T. Batte
Lauren E. Jones
Affiliation:
Department of Policy Analysis and Management, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
Florian Diekmann
Affiliation:
University Libraries, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
Marvin T. Batte
Affiliation:
Fred N. VanBuren Professorship in the Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
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Abstract

The U.S. farming industry is evolving quickly. It is therefore important that state Extension services be prepared to evolve as well. This study uses data collected in a 2007 survey of Ohio farmers to evaluate likelihood and frequency of use of various services offered by Extension as well as overall satisfaction with Extension services. Results indicate that tailoring of topics and communication methods to type of farm and/or farmer informational needs could improve the use of Extension resources. This implies that targeting of information products and methods may improve the performance of Extension education programs and customer satisfaction.

Keywords

communication methodsdouble hurdle modelExtension information demandExtension satisfactionvalue of informationQ10Q12Q16
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics , Volume 42 , Issue 2 , May 2010 , pp. 229 - 246
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 2010

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