Cognitive and motivational factors driving farmer uptake of agricultural innovations: Lessons for extension programming

Abstract

Farmer adoption decisions are influenced as much by cognitive and motivational factors as by economic considerations. This research investigated cognitive and motivational determinants driving farmer uptake of agricultural innovations in KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga provinces, South Africa. A survey of 488 smallholders (September 2021-April 2022) measured five constructs: self-efficacy, risk tolerance, perceived usefulness, social norm influence, and innovation openness. Adopters (n=261) scored significantly higher on all constructs (p<0.01). Logistic regression identified self-efficacy (?=0.51, p<0.001) and perceived usefulness (?=0.44, p<0.001) as the strongest predictors, followed by innovation openness (?=0.31, p<0.01). These results suggest extension programs should prioritize confidence-building and tangible benefit demonstrations rather than depending on information dissemination alone.