Factors associated with farmers’ use of fee-for-service advisors in a privatized agricultural extension system

摘要: Abstract The privatization of agricultural advisory and extension services in many countries the associated pluralism service providers has renewed interest farmers’ use fee-for-service advisors. Understanding is important, given role such are expected to play helping farmers address critical environmental sustainability challenges. This paper aims identify factors with fee-for advisors bring fresh conceptualization this topic. Drawing on concepts from ecosystems innovation using theory planned behavior define a plausible directed acyclic graph, we conducted cross-sectional study 1003 Australian their advisors, analyzing data generalized ordinal logistic regression models. We defined three categories: who used as main source advice (‘main source'), them but did not consider (‘non-main source’), (‘non-user’). most strongly (both 'main source' 'non-main source') were: farm being growth/expanding business stage; behavioral beliefs that paying for provides control helps new opportunities farming; endorsement others farmer peers; attitudes relating benefit value money advice; perceived related confidence accessing advice. These findings can inform strategies enable For example, they highlight need increase social acceptance assist better articulate terms view important. Currently, mechanisms professionalizing certifying focus policy makers enabling Our indicate these own would necessarily lead greater advice, because also based several attitudinal addition perception quality. Greater emphasis found required when developing