Socio-psychological profile of the farmers regarding newly released wheat varieties

Introduction

Agriculture plays a vital role in the Indian economy, with wheat being one of the most important staple crops contributing significantly to food security and farmers' livelihoods. The development and dissemination of improved wheat varieties by institutions such as Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University have created new opportunities for enhancing productivity and sustainability. However, the adoption of these varieties largely depends not only on their technical superiority but also on the socio-psychological characteristics of farmers, including their attitude, decision-making ability, and farm management orientation. In recent years, extension interventions like Cluster Frontline Demonstrations (CFLDs) have gained prominence in promoting improved agricultural practices. Studies, including those by Sangwan et al., (2021) [10] have reported that CFLDs are highly effective in motivating farmers and positively influencing their attitude towards adoption of improved technologies and crop management practices. Therefore, understanding the socio-psychological profile of farmers becomes essential for designing effective extension strategies and ensuring wider adoption of newly released wheat varieties. Thurstone (1946) [13] defined attitude as the degree of positive or negative affect associated with a psychological object. His scaling method has been widely used in agricultural extension research to measure farmers' attitudes toward new technologies. Nandapurkar (1981) [6] developed a decision-making scale indicating that farmers who consult multiple sources tend to make more rational and economically viable decisions compared to those relying solely on intuition. Samanta (1977) [9] emphasized that farm management Orientation-covering planning, production, and marketingsignificantly influences adoption of improved agricultural practices. Rogers (2003) [8] in his Diffusion of Innovations theory reported that farmers' attitude and decision-making ability are key determinants in the adoption of new crop varieties and technologies. Naik et al. (2020) [5] found that a majority of farmers exhibited a medium level of attitude towards ICT tools, suggesting gradual acceptance of modern technologies in agriculture. Ghanghas and Malik (2017) [2] reported that educational interventions and field demonstrations significantly improved farmers' attitudes toward sustainable practices like crop residue management. Sangwan et al. (2021) [10] observed that Cluster Frontline Demonstrations (CFLDs) effectively enhanced farmers' knowledge and positively changed their attitude toward improved crop varieties. Uddin et al. (2014) [14] highlighted that poor management capacity and labour constraints negatively affect farmers' ability to make effective farm decisions despite availability of inputs. Singh (2015) [12] reported that farmers with higher management orientation showed greater adoption of improved wheat varieties due to better planning and resource allocation. Kumar (2018) [3] found that decision-making ability is positively correlated with education level and access to extension services among farmers. Sharma (2016) [11] revealed that farmers with favourable attitudes toward improved wheat varieties were more likely to adopt them, leading to higher productivity. Meena (2017) [4] observed that socio-psychological factors such as attitude and risk orientation significantly influence farmers' adoption behaviour. Patel (2019) [7] concluded that farmers' participation in training programs enhances both decision-making ability and management orientation. Chaudhary (2020) [1] reported that farmers in Haryana showed medium to high levels of management orientation but faced challenges in marketing decisions. Verma (2018) [15] indicated that extension contact and information accessibility significantly influence farmers' attitude and decision-making behaviour toward new agricultural technologies.

Methodology

Psychological variables include attitude, decision-making ability and management orientation of farmers regarding newly released wheat varieties by CCSHAU. i) Attitude: Thurstone (1946) [13] defined attitude as the degree of positive or negative effects associated with some psychological object. By psychological object, it reflects symbol, phrase, idea etc. towards which, people can differ with respect to positive or negative effect. In the present study, interpretation of attitude/ persuasion was the same as suggested by Thurstone.

In order to measure the attitude of respondents towards newly released wheat varieties of CCSHAU, general 32 attitude statements both positive and negative were prepared. The respondents were asked to give their reaction on each statement in three categories i.e. most favorable, favorable and least favorable which were assigned the score of 3, 2 and1 for positive statement and 1, 2 and 3 for negative statements. Further, ranks were assigned to all the statements on the basis of WMS. Based on the total score obtained by the respondents, they were grouped into three categories namely, low, medium and high by considering mean score and standard deviation and Coefficient of Variation (CV) was used for analysis.

ii) Decision-making ability: It is the degree to which, an individual justifies his selection of most efficient means from the available alternatives on the basis of scientific criteria for achieving maximum economic profits. This is measured with the help of partially modified scale developed by Nandapurkar (1981) [6] . It consisted of 9 items each with 3-point response continuum namely decision without thinking, consulting family/friends and self without consulting with a score of 2, 1 and 0, respectively. Based on the total score obtained by the respondents, they were grouped into three categories namely, low, medium and high by considering mean score and standard deviation used for analysis. iii) Management orientation: It is operationally defined as the degree to which, a farmer is oriented towards scientific farm management comprising planning, production, and marketing function of the farm. This was measured with a partially modified scale developed by Samanta (1977) [9] . The scale consisted of nine statements, three statements (each) for planning, production and marketing orientation.

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In each group, positive and negative statements were mixed. Each item was provided with three-point responses continuum. The positive statements were given a score of two for agree, one for disagree and 0 for undecided and vice-versa in case of a negative statement. The score for each individual on the management orientation scale is obtained by summation of the score awarded for each of the items included. Based on the total score obtained by the respondents, they were, grouped into three as follows:

Results

Under the category of socio psychological characteristics, three variables namely attitude of the respondent, decisionmaking ability and farm management orientation towards improved wheat varieties of wheat is hereby presented in Tables. Accordingly, distribution of the respondents is discussed below:

Attitude of the respondents towards wheat varieties

Attitude is operationalized as the degree of positive or negative effect associated with some psychological object (Thurston, 1946)

Overall attitude of the respondents towards wheat varieties

Regarding overall attitude towards wheat varieties released by CCSHAU, the data given in Table 1 illustrates that majority of the respondents (70.5%) had most favorable attitude towards wheat varieties released by CCSHAU, which was followed by moderately favorable (17.2%) and least favorable attitude (12.2%) with a mean of 75.17 and standard deviation of 20.36 and CV of 27.08. It suggests that though the respondents are diversely distributed in respect of most of the socio-personal characters, but they are very much consistent in respect of their attitude towards wheat varieties released by CCSHAU. The findings are in tune with Naik et al. (2020) [5] who states that the majority of farmers (73.3%) had a medium level attitude towards ICT tools, followed by high (15.0%) and the remaining farmers (11.66%) who had a low-level attitude. Furthermore, Ghanghas and Malik (2017) [2] also revealed that a greater number of educational programmes should be organized to change the attitude of farmers towards untidy fields. Thus, it can be concluded that majority of the respondents (57.8%) having medium to high decision-making ability towards newly released wheat varieties.

Findings of the present study revealed that majority of the respondents had medium to low level of decision-making ability and orientation towards farm management respectively. On the contrary, Uddin et al. (2014) [14] noted that all inputs were available but, due to a lack of proper management capacity in relation to farm size, large farms fail to adapt efficiently. Also, lack of available labour was found to be another reason for not employing an adaptable strategy.

Orientation towards farm management is operationally defined as the degree to which a farmer is oriented towards scientific farm management comprising planning, production and marketing function of the farm.

It is apparent from [10] also coincide with the findings of present study which reported that that Cluster Frontline Demonstration (CFLD) programmes were very effective in motivating and changing the attitude of other farmers to adopt improved cultivation practices and crop management.

Conclusion

The socio-psychological profile of the respondents indicates that a majority of farmers had a favorable attitude towards newly released wheat varieties of CCSHAU. This positive attitude was mainly influenced by perceived benefits such as higher yield, better quality, and disease resistance. Despite this, most respondents exhibited a medium level of decisionmaking ability, suggesting limited use of scientific approaches. Similarly, farm management orientation was also found to be at a medium level, particularly weaker in marketing aspects. The findings highlight that while farmers are receptive to improved technologies, their managerial and decision-making capacities need strengthening. There exists a gap between positive attitude and practical application. Therefore, effective extension services and training programs are essential. Enhancing technical knowledge and market awareness can improve adoption. Focus on capacity building will help farmers make better decisions. This will ultimately lead to improved productivity and income.

References

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