15 pages., ISSN-1042-0541, Via ERIC., Employers have identified oral and written communications skills to be the most important skills graduates should possess when entering the workforce. In order for faculty to better understand their students' oral and written communications skills, they should understand what apprehension the students have toward oral and written communications. Specifically, no studies have been found that explore communication apprehension (CA) or writing apprehension (WA) in agricultural communications students. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore agricultural communications students' perceptions of CA and WA. Participants believe agricultural communications instructors set up an environment that is conducive to changing behavior. However, students realized and identified areas of improvement that could help them lower their CA and WA. Recommendations for practice are provided in order to help alleviate CA and WA in agricultural communications students.
14 pages., The 4-H Youth Development program prohibits all forms of discrimination which includes disability. 4-H Extension professionals provide the essential interface between Extension and the local community to create an inclusive environment for all youth, including those with disabilities, that is welcoming and accessible. Attitudes and self-efficacy for working with youth who have disabilities impact how well 4-
H delivers positive youth development programs. The purpose of this study was to determine state-wide 4-H Extension professionals’ attitudes, self-efficacy, and perceptions of inclusion toward youth with disabilities. In addition, the researchers sought to examine their use of a training program to better serve youth with disabilities. All 4-H Extension professionals in Ohio were surveyed (N = 135) with 71
responding (response rate of 53%). Results indicated the attitudes of Extension professionals for accepting of and feeling comfortable around youth with disabilities was overwhelmingly positive. They also perceived that youth with disabilities felt that they were included in 4-H activities. For self-efficacy,
4-H professionals reported they could effectively provide inclusive opportunities for youth with disabilities and adapt their level of instruction, take extra time, and pay attention to the needs of youth
with disabilities. However, about a third of the respondents somewhat or strongly agreed that their workload would increase by having youth with disabilities in their organization. The disability training program was used by over three-fourths of the 4-H professionals and helped them to engage with parents to learn more about their children with disabilities. The program also improved accommodations and
creating a more inclusive 4-H environment.
22 pages, via online journal, Traditionally, 4-H agents have been communicating with stakeholders through newsletters; either in print or online. 4-H agents have used social media as an additional tool to communicate with their stakeholders since its introduction. Social media communication can help maintain or increase stakeholder involvement in the 4-H program because a large percentage of the population is active on social media. Using Uses and Gratifications Theory and Diffusion of Innovations Theory as frameworks, this study sought to determine how Florida 4-H agents engaged with their stakeholder audiences using social media, and vice versa. The uses and gratifications motivations for engaging in media were used to understand what motivations were used to engage their audience and what type of posts (according to motivation) stakeholders were engaged in most. The diffusion of innovations innovation-decision process helped to understand the audiences’ decision to engage in posts dependent upon the motivation used. The results of this study concluded the selected 4-H programs differed in the content that they posted but the 4-H stakeholders did not differ in how they engaged in their respective programs posts.
15 pages., via online journal, Genetic modification (GM) science has received considerable pushback from consumers despite the research finding GM products are safe for consumption. This may be partly due to the disconnect between consumers and farms since most consumers are disconnected from the farm by at least three generations. The largest consumer population is composed of millennials, which is the generation furthest removed from the farm which may mean they need to be educated differently about GM science than other generations. The purpose of this research was to determine if there were generational differences regarding the perceived attributes of GM science to inform the development of extension programs designed to educate consumers about GM science. A survey was used to collect consumers’ perceptions of GM science. The respondents were grouped into generational classifications and perceptions between groups were compared. The findings revealed generations do perceived GM science differently and extension programs should be designed for specific generational audiences.
17 pages, Small farms and small farmers are a growing sector of the agricultural economy nationwide. Notably, small farms are influenced by similar antagonists to the success of their business as large, concentrated operations, but they experience it differently. The purpose of this study was to describe small farms and farmers in North Dakota to assist North Dakota State University Extension in defining their needs for programming development. We found that nearly 45% of small farmer respondents are women. Small farmers prefer to access information for their operations in a variety of ways but like to engage with Extension through more direct and personal means. Recommendations include developing programming targeted at female farmers and organizing Extension information resources targeted at small farm needs, specifically.
