Abstract

GUILLEN PEREZ, Luis; SANCHEZ QUINTANAR, Concepción  and  MERCADO DOMENECH, Serafín. A contribution to the psychosocial study of the use of technology for weed control in maize. Bioagro [online]. 2004, vol.16, n.1, pp.31-38. ISSN 1316-3361.

A study was conducted to identify and analyze the causal attributions the farmers, extensionists and researches adscribe to the use of technology for weed control in maize. The study was carried out in the Valley of Toluca, Mexico. The sampling was non intentional probabilistic, conforming a sample of 45 farmers, 21 agricultural extension agents and 7 maize specialized researchers. The investigation techniques were: 1) technical pursuit of the agricultural cycle and 2) individual interviews of causal attribution. The information was analyzed using the identification and classification of categories of answers by individual groups (qualitative method) and involving multidimensional scaling (quantitative method). Results indicate that: 1) farmers do not use the recommended technology; 2) seven causes were identified by which the farmers do not use the technology; they are climatic factors, economic factor. ignorance, cultural aspects, distrust in the herbicides, indifference, and excess of weed; 3) the three groups of social actors perceive in different ways the fact of not using the technology and 4) the study evidences the existent of separation among the three groups

Keywords : Causal attributions; Zea mays; social actors.