Co-production of Knowledge in Multi-stakeholder Processes: Analyzing Joint Experimentation as Social Learning

Purpose: Changing research design and methodologies regarding how researchers articulate with end-users of technology is an important consideration in developing sustainable agricultural practices. This paper analyzes a joint experiment as a multi-stakeholder process and contributes to understand how the way of organizing social learning affects stakeholders’ ownership of process outcomes. Design/Methodology/Approach:A learning group composed of the different stakeholders of the oil palm seed system in Benin was set around a joint experiment. We use a detailed account of the group dynamics to understand the social process. Findings: The way the process is designed and conducted has a great effect on the ownership by the participants. Methodological steps taken in this research process showed its efficacy to produce quick and positive feedback mechanisms. Stakeholders’ perspectives on what constitutes a quality oil palm seedling varied widely. Participants, mainly nursery holders, learned new production practices. Representatives of the research center learned a mismatch of recommendations with users’ contexts. Field observations further to the process indicate changes in practices among stakeholders that would be sustainable. Practical Implications: Beyond focusing on outcomes, initiatives in multi-stakeholder processes should also document and analyze social processes in order to better understand the mechanisms by which such processes foster socio-technical change, as well as identify potential institutional barriers to such processes. Originality/Value: Through a detailed analysis of group dynamics, this paper addresses an important knowledge gap in participatory agricultural development.     

Crossing the communication divide: Intergroup contact and the desire to learn the outgroup’s language

This paper explores the role of ethnolinguistic vitality and intergroup contact in changing attitudes and the interest to learn Hungarian among Slovak-speaking secondary school students in Southern Slovakia (N?=?225). Several indirect paths linking the all these variables were found. In general, lower local ethnolinguistic vitality of Hungarian decreased intergroup anxiety and increased the quality of contact with members of the Hungarian minority, which led to a more positive attitude toward the Hungarian minority, and enhanced the interest to learn Hungarian.     

Changes in University Governance in France and in Italy

The transformation of higher education systems under the pressure of new needs required by the “society of knowledge” in France and Italy has had a deep effect on the relationship between state and university, and therefore a direct impact on university governance. This article sums up the main results of a research carried out on university Présidents in France and Rettori in Italy, with the aim of understanding their views about the changing process in higher education systems and the related impact on their leading role. There emerges a picture of systems transiting from a traditional centralised Napoleonic structure to a new one where the growing autonomy requires a different kind of governance not previously experienced, and thus not easy to implement mostly because of the resistance coming from universities themselves. The majority of Presidents and Rectors seem aware of the changing process and the related problems even if they do not all agree upon feasible trends to follow. Such a disagreement appears to be an understandable consequence of the unstable and unpredictable direction of the changing situation in the two systems.     

New Challenges in Agricultural Advisory Services from a Research Perspective: A Literature Review,Synthesis and Research Agenda

Abstract

Purpose: Agricultural advisory services are perceived by many actors involved in rural development as a key driver behind innovation processes in agriculture. However, changes in national and global contexts cause dramatic changes in the orientation of advisory services, their organisation and their methods of intervention. This article aims to analyse the major research topics related to agricultural advice.

Design/methodology/approach: The study is based on an extensive review of literature produced over a ten-year period that is accessible through the CAB, ECONLIT and Web of Science citation indexes. Using keywords related to extension and advisory services, we selected published articles according to the relevance of the results provided in relation to advisory services and the quality of the discussion on past or current controversies.

Findings: The results show that the ongoing scientific debates are shaped by the diversity of disciplines, methods, topics and schools of thought. The scientific community largely has focussed on five main themes: (1) the institutional environment of agricultural advisory services; (2) the structures necessary for the operation of an advisory system; (3) the actors providing advisory services and the skills deployed in advisory activities; (4) the approaches, methods, tools and content of advisory activities; and (5) the assessment and impacts of advisory systems.

Practical implications: This literature review is useful for researchers and practitioners to better understand research results in the field of advisory services. It paves the way for future research.

Originality/Value: Although many articles have been written in recent decades on agricultural advisory services, few studies provide an overview of the contributions of, and debates in, the international scientific community.     

Boundary crossing between higher education and the world of work: a case study in post-1994 Rwanda

Workplaces abound with knowledge that is different from the knowledge students gain at universities. Crossing the boundary from a university to a workplace can, therefore, be difficult for students. To compensate for the dearth of knowledge on how these issues play out in an African context, this study investigates how knowledge and experiences gained during academic studies were useful in the workplace by interviewing employers from sectors commonly open to university graduates and student representatives from all faculties at a Rwandan University. Open questionnaires were used to ascertain what kinds of changes might lead to more successful boundary crossing. The findings suggest that while domain-specific knowledge is an essential part of a university qualification, a stronger focus on generic skills is needed in order to help students cross the boundary and succeed in the workplace.