دانلود رایگان مقاله طراحی موثر ابزار پشتیبانی تصمیم گیری برای کشاورزی

Abstract

Decision support tools, usually considered to be software-based, may be an important part of the quest for evidence-based decision-making in agriculture to improve productivity and environmental outputs. These tools can lead users through clear steps and suggest optimal decision paths or may act more as information sources to improve the evidence base for decisions. Yet, despite their availability in a wide range of formats, studies in several countries have shown uptake to be disappointingly low. This paper uses a mixed methods approach to investigate the factors affecting the uptake and use of decision support tools by farmers and advisers in the UK. Through a combination of qualitative interviews and quantitative surveys, we found that fifteen factors are influential in convincing farmers and advisers to use decision support tools, which include usability, cost-effectiveness, performance, relevance to user, and compatibility with compliance demands. This study finds a plethora of agricultural decision support tools in operation in the UK, yet, like other studies, shows that their uptake is low. A better understanding of the fifteen factors identified should lead to more effective design and delivery of tools in the future.

4. Discussion

The fifteen factors identified in this research provide useful insights into the characteristics on an effective decision support tool. In many ways, the results are similar to studies conducted elsewhere. For example, Alvarez and Nuthall (2006) undertook research in New Zealand and Uruguay into decision support tool uptake and found various attributes important to uptake; these included farmer objectives, personality, education, skills, learning style and the size of business. Research in Australia has highlighted the importance of perceived usefulness, ease of use, fit to task/workflow, profitability, credibility, relevance to individual farms, updated information, and level of user-knowledge (Kerr, 2004; McCown, 2002). Indeed, Hochman and Carberry (2011) argue that there is an emerging consensus about the desirable characteristics of an effective decision support tool. The factors found to be most influential in their review included a plan for delivery after the initial funding period, involvement of users, appropriate education, the need to satisfy user needs, a strong evidence-base, and good marketing. And yet despite Hochman and Carberry's (2011) statement of an emerging consensus, other authors have still described the problem of low uptake as an ‘enigma’ (McCown, 2012).