13 pages., Via online journal., Agricultural research in developing countries often involves collaboration between dispersed multicultural teams of scientists from developed and developing countries. The teams use information and computing technologies (ICTs) to communicate between team members, who originate from different cultures using different languages. This paper investigates the usability and utility of a range of ICTs used for communication between team members from different cultures. The research used an intercultural heuristic evaluation tool, or I‐CHET, to evaluate nine ICTs used by Australian and Lao scientists for team communication. The evaluation showed that asynchronous ICTs (e.g., e‐mail) were preferred by non‐native English speakers, while synchronous media (e.g., audio conferencing, instant messaging, Skype) presented considerable problems between team members from different cultures. Most ICTs evaluated in the study demonstrated little consideration for non‐native English speakers and for inexperienced ICTs users. However, all evaluated ICTs demonstrated the ability to transmit information and encourage communication between information users in scientific collaborations. The I‐CHET assessment tool highlights the ongoing need for a “toolbox” of communication ICTs for research collaborations that can be adapted to suit the cultural and professional needs of multinational teams, worldwide.
Rumble, Joy N. (author), Lamm, Alexa J. (author), Gay, Keegan D. (author), and University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Center for Public
Issues Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources
Format:
Online journal article
Publication Date:
[date of publication not identified]
Published:
USA: The American Association for Agricultural Education
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 151 Document Number: D10119
16 pages., via online journal, The Cooperative Extension Service has performed the role of educator and change agent for more than a century. Changes occurring during this period caused Extension to extend its influence beyond the farm and traditional roles. Today, Extension faces controversial public issues and unparalleled levels of policy and regulation impacting agriculture and natural resources. As the needs of our changing society evolve, regulation increases, and response to public opinion becomes more complex. Extension must expand its role in providing education related to public issues and acting as facilitators and change agents to ensure viable actions are taken. This study was conducted to determine the level of preparedness of Florida Extension agents in dealing with policies and regulations. An emailed survey of all Florida Extension agents utilized questions regarding frequency of addressing policies with their clientele and their knowledge of said policies. Results indicated a low frequency of agents of all types addressing most policies with their clientele and a need for increased knowledge about the policies. In particular, there is an opportunity for all agent types to improve interactions with clientele on the topic of Immigration Reform as well as knowledge of related policies.