Training needs of agricultural extension workers and their relationship to some variables in Salah al-Din Governorate, Iraq

Introduction

Research problem

Training has become a crucial element in the efficiency and effectiveness of organizations of all types, sizes, and activities. The nature of work within modern organizations demands highly competent human resources capable of effective performance. The contemporary world is witnessing a rapid scientific and technological revolution across various economic, social, political, and cultural fields. This has rendered many traditional training programs incapable of adequately transferring and keeping pace with modern technology and its rapid changes, as noted by Jamil [1] . Consequently, there is a growing interest in training as an investment in human capital and a fundamental element in human resource development. The success of organizations depends largely on their ability to optimally utilize available human resources with high efficiency. Ashcroft [2] argues that knowledge production and generation have become an enduring organizational value that transcends the mere production of goods and services. Administrative and organizational literature confirms that human resource development is a fundamental pillar of creativity and institutional excellence, and that the success of any country's economic and social plans depends largely on the level of preparation and development of its human resources to meet the demands of the times, as Huang [3] explained. Training is one of the most important tools for human development, as it contributes to updating employees' knowledge, developing their skills and professional capabilities, and improving their efficiency in using available resources. This, in turn, positively impacts institutional performance and productivity, as Al-Ghalibi and Saleh [4] pointed out. In this context, agricultural extension is a fundamental component of the educational and developmental process in rural communities, as it is based on scientific principles aimed at advancing the agricultural sector and improving rural life, as Al-Tanoubi [5] confirmed. Al-Tanoubi [6] also pointed out that agricultural extension aims to bring about desirable behavioral changes in cognitive, skill-based, and emotional aspects, thereby contributing to raising the economic and social level of rural residents. Extension management is the decisive factor in increasing the effectiveness of the extension system through its functions of planning, organizing, coordinating, monitoring, and evaluating, as well as promoting collaborative work among staff to www.extensionjournal.com achieve extension goals, as explained by Al-Mursi [7] . Meanwhile, Musleh [8] indicated that the effectiveness of training depends on its alignment with the needs of the staff. Abu Al-Nasr [9] also highlighted the importance of equipping trainees with the necessary skills and knowledge to perform their work efficiently. Jahami [10] emphasized that training contributes to improved performance by teaching modern work methods. Shakeel and Lodhi [11] further explained that job performance improves when training is based on a precise scientific identification of training needs. Kapha [12] affirmed that comprehensive training positively impacts organizational performance. Based on this, the importance of studying the training needs of agricultural extension workers becomes clear, as it serves as a scientific approach to developing training programs and enhancing extension performance, [13] thereby contributing to the achievement of agricultural and rural development goals. However, the practical reality of agricultural extension work in Salah al-Din Governorate indicates weaknesses and inconsistencies in the performance of some workers, particularly in the use of modern extension methods and in addressing farmers' problems with scientific efficiency [14] . This is something the researcher observed through his academic experience and direct field observations. This weakness is partly attributed to the lack of clarity and definition of the actual training needs of agricultural extension workers in various extension fields, as well as the implementation of training programs that are often not based on sound scientific principles. Hence, the research problem arises: the need to identify the training needs of agricultural extension workers in Salah al-Din Governorate, which will contribute to guiding future training programs to meet these needs and improve extension performance. 2. To establish the correlation between extension needs and each of the studied independent variables.

Research questions

Research hypotheses

1. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the age variable. 2. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the educational attainment variable. 3. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the job stability variable. 4. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the number of years of extension work experience. 5. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the career ambition variable. 6. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the contribution to farmer training variable. 7. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the job satisfaction variable. 8. There is no significant correlation between extension needs and the attitude towards training variable.

Research area

Research community and sample size

The research community included all employees in agricultural extension in the Salah al-Din Governorate Agriculture Directorate and its affiliated agricultural divisions and the extension center, totaling (854) employees. The sample size was calculated according to a table by Krejcie & Morgan (1970) to determine the sample size, as shown in Appendix [1] . Societies that exceed 850 in size are proportional to a sample size of (265). After determining the total sample size, the sample size was extracted in the Agriculture Directorate and its affiliated agricultural divisions according to the proportional stratified sampling law, where its size reached (265) respondents, and its calculation ratios are shown in Table (1.3).

Preparing the data collection tool

The term data collection tool is a methodological term that means the means by which the necessary information is collected through answering research questions and testing its hypotheses, in accordance with the nature of the research problem. The researcher chose the questionnaire form, as the questionnaire is one of the most widely used and common data collection tools, especially in educational and social research. The questionnaire helps to gather information about knowledge, attitudes, and opinions, and it consists of two parts: The first part: included a set of questions related to personal variables (personal, social, functional, and communicative), which are (age, occupation or job, agricultural specialization, academic level, number of years of study, number of years of service, income, social participation, attendance at training courses, job stability, dealing with farmers, job satisfaction). The second part included: the training needs of workers in agricultural extension in some areas of agricultural extension work in Salah al-Din Governorate, which included a scale consisting of four areas.

Results and Discussion Objective 1

Training needs in some areas of guidance work in Salah al-Din Governorate, Republic of Iraq, in general. The results showed that the lowest score was (329) and the highest score was (430), with a mean of (378.52) and a standard deviation of (18.32). The respondents were divided into three categories using the range law, and the highest score was found to be within the middle category, as shown in Table (2). Accordingly, Table [2] shows that the highest percentage (47.6%) of respondents fell within the middle category with an average need of (379.19), followed by the low category with (19.3%) and an average need of (353.22).

The results indicate that most respondents fall within the middle category in some areas of extension work, and that the middle and low need categories represented (80.4%) of the total respondents. This may be due to the weakness of extension efforts directed at agricultural extension workers in Salah al-Din Governorate.

The second objective: To find the correlation between guidance needs and each of the following independent variables.

Gender of the respondent

The gender variable was divided into two categories (male, female), and it appeared that the highest percentage of respondents were in the male category, as shown in Table [3] . To find the relationship between training needs and the gender variable, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used, which amounted to (0.24). To confirm the significance of the relationship, the t-test was used, which amounted to www.extensionjournal.com (4.012). When compared with the tabulated t-value (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because male workers perform agricultural extension tasks more than females, and this in turn leads to the accumulation of knowledge and experience about extension work fields, and thus they have less training need than females, or their participation in training courses may be more than females.

Age

The results showed that the youngest age was (28) years and the oldest age was (58) years, with a mean of (40.42) years and a standard deviation of (3.97). The respondents were divided into three categories using the range law, and it appeared that the highest score within the middle-aged category was shown, as shown in Table (4). To find the relationship between training needs and the age variable, Pearson's correlation coefficient was used, which amounted to (0.24). To confirm the significance of the relationship, the t-test was used, which amounted to (1.539). When compared with the tabulated t-value (1.645), it was found to be nonsignificant at a probability level of 0.05. This may be because male workers perform agricultural extension tasks more than females, and this in turn leads to the accumulation of knowledge and experience about extension work fields, and thus they have less training need than females, or their participation in training courses may be more than females.

Participation in social organizations

The variable was divided into participation in social organizations (participant, non-participant), and the highest percentage of respondents were found to be in the participant category, as shown in Table (5). To find the correlation between training needs and the variable of participation in social organizations, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used, which had a value of (0.22). To confirm the significance of the relationship, a t-test was used, which had a value of (3.658). When compared with the tabulated t-value (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because male workers perform agricultural extension tasks more than females, which in turn leads to an accumulation of knowledge and experience in extension work areas, and thus they have less training need than females, or their participation in training courses may be greater than females.

Academic qualification Academic achievement

The educational achievement variable was divided into four categories, and the highest percentage of respondents was found to be in the Bachelor of Agriculture category, as shown in Table (6). To find the relationship between training needs and the gender variable, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used, which amounted to (0.33). To confirm the significance of the relationship, the t-test was used, which amounted to (5.639). When compared with the tabulated t-value (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because male workers perform agricultural extension tasks more than females, and this in turn leads to the accumulation of knowledge and experience about extension work fields, and thus they have less training need than females, or their participation in training courses may be more than females. www.extensionjournal.com

Number of years of study for all educational levels

The results showed that the lowest number of years was (14) years and the highest number of years was (22) years, with an average of (17.83) years and a standard deviation of (2.67). The respondents were divided into three categories using the range law, and the highest percentage appeared within the category of those with an average number of years of study, as shown in Table (7). To find the relationship between training needs and the gender variable, Pearson's correlation coefficient was used, which amounted to (0.34). To confirm the significance of the relationship, the t-test was used, which amounted to (5.875). When compared with the tabulated t-value (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because male workers perform agricultural extension tasks more than females, and this in turn leads to the accumulation of knowledge and experience about extension work fields, and thus they have less training need than females, or their participation in training courses may be more than females.

Occupational data Job title

The job title variable was divided into three categories, and the highest percentage of respondents were found to be in the agricultural extension category, as shown in Table (8). To find the correlation between training needs and the job title variable, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used, which had a value of (0.18). To confirm the significance of the relationship, a t-test was used, which had a value of (2.962). When compared with the tabulated tvalue (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because male employees perform agricultural extension tasks more than females, which in turn leads to an accumulation of knowledge and experience in extension work, and thus they have less training need than females, or their participation in training courses may be greater than females.

Scientific specialization

The scientific specialization variable was divided into two categories (extension, non-extension), and it appeared that the highest percentage of respondents were in the nonextension agricultural specialization category, as shown in Table (9). To find the relationship between training needs and the gender variable, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used, which amounted to (0.27). To confirm the significance of the relationship, the t-test was used, which amounted to (4.538). When compared with the tabulated t-value (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because male workers perform agricultural extension tasks more than females, and this in turn leads to the accumulation of knowledge and experience about extension work fields, and thus they have less training need than females, or their participation in training courses may be more than females.

Number of years of service

The results showed that the shortest number of years of service was 31 years and the longest was 58 years, with a mean of 39.16 years and a standard deviation of 4.11. The respondents were divided into three categories using the range law, and the highest percentage was found within the category of those with average years of service, as shown in Table 10. To find the correlation between training needs and the gender variable, Pearson's coefficient was used, which had a value of 0.47. To confirm the significance of the relationship, a t-test was used, which had a value of 8.290. When compared to the tabulated t-value of 2.326, it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because male employees perform agricultural extension tasks more frequently than females, which in turn leads to an accumulation of knowledge and experience in extension work, thus making them less in need of training than females, or perhaps their participation in training courses is higher than females. The results showed that the fewest training courses attended by the respondents were (12) courses, and the most were [21] courses, with an average of (16.43) courses and a standard deviation of (2.45). The highest percentage was found among those who participated in a large number of training courses, as shown in Table (11). To determine the correlation between training needs and the variable of participation in the number of training courses, Pearson's correlation coefficient was used, which had a value of (0.26). To confirm the significance of the relationship, a ttest was used, which had a value of (4.323). When compared to the tabulated t-value (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because the more courses the respondents participated in, the more experience and knowledge they gained in the fields of guidance work, and thus they had less need than those who participated in fewer courses.

Training

Job stability Transfer during the period of work in the agricultural department

The variable of transfers during employment in the agricultural department was divided into two categories (Yes, No). The highest percentage of respondents fell into the category of non-transfer, as shown in Table [12] . To find the correlation between training needs and the variable of transfers during employment in the department, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used, which had a value of (0.10). To confirm the significance of the relationship, a ttest was used, which had a value of (1.629). When compared with the tabulated t-value (1.645), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because the respondents who are more stable and do not experience transfers during their service are more experienced in extension work tasks and therefore have less need than their peers who are subject to transfers, i.e., their instability in the departments where they work.

Number of times transferred

The results showed that the lowest number of transfers was once, and the highest number was [6] times. A percentage of (23.4%) of the respondents were transferred from one agricultural department to another, with the highest percentage falling within the (1-2) time range, as shown in Table (13). To find the correlation between training needs and the variable of number of transfers, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used, which had a value of (0.11). To confirm the significance of the relationship, a twww.extensionjournal.com test was used, which had a value of (1.791). When compared to the tabulated t-value (1.645), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.05. This may be because the stability of the employee within the agricultural department increases their knowledge and experience in the field of extension work, and thus reduces their need for training compared to agricultural extension workers who frequently move between agricultural departments.

Reason for multiple transfers

This is due to the need of some agricultural departments for a specific number or specializations to work in agricultural extension. 6.4. Interaction with farmers The results showed that the lowest value for respondents' interaction with farmers was (27) and the highest value was [48] , with a mean of (39.86) and a standard deviation of (3.32). The highest percentage appeared within a large group, as shown in Table (14). To find the correlation between training needs and the variable of interaction with farmers, Pearson's coefficient was used, which had a value of (0.35). To confirm the significance of the relationship, a t-test was used, which had a value of (8.290). When compared to the tabulated t-value of (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because the higher the level of interaction respondents had with farmers, the greater their experience and knowledge in the field of extension work, and therefore the lower their level of need for training.

Job satisfaction

The results showed that the lowest job satisfaction score for the respondents was (31) and the highest was (43), with a mean of (38.64) and a standard deviation of (2.87). The highest percentage was found within the "strongly agree" category, as shown in Table (15). To find the correlation between training needs and the job satisfaction variable, Pearson's coefficient was used, which had a value of (0.38). To confirm the significance of the relationship, a t-test was used, which had a value of (6.642). When compared to the tabulated t-value (2.326), it was found to be significant at a probability level of 0.01. This may be because the higher the level of job satisfaction among the respondents, the greater their experience and knowledge in the field of guidance work, and therefore their lower level of need for training compared to respondents with average and low job satisfaction.

Conclusion

Increase Participation in Organizations and

Activities: Encourage workers to join social organizations and professional activities to enhance their experience and reduce training needs.

Develop

Farmer-Specific Programs: Design extension programs that consider farmers' different educational levels to ensure effective communication and guidance. 4. Raise Academic Achievement: Encourage workers to pursue postgraduate studies or specialized courses in agricultural extension to enhance their competence. 5. Promote Job Satisfaction: Improve the work environment and provide moral and material incentives to increase employee satisfaction and motivate them to develop their extension skills.

References

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