Telephone interviews were conducted with 112 residents of three rural Wyoming counties to determine sources of general and agricultural news and patterns of media use. Results indicated that farm and ranch news is gained from all facets of the mass media, but that magazines are used as a source more than is any other medium. Magazine usage was…

This paper examines non-human loss and its psychological effect upon rural people. It discusses the absence of any ritual response to loss, including farm loss, that would otherwise benefit the loss victims or the surrounding society. The dilemma is comparable to that of the "transitional person," the immigrant experience following World…

Thomas Jefferson's elevation of the small landowning farmer to the guardian and bastion of democracy became the centerpiece for a later generation's struggle. Jeffersonian democracy, a philosophy based on the belief that "those who labor in the earth are the chosen people of God" guided the rural insurgents that swept Minnesota and North…

Crime and vandalism on farms is possibly a symptom of rural youth delinquency and of concern to rural educators. This study of experience of Tennessee farmers with crime and vandalism is intended to provide a measure of the present social condition of rural society. Questionnaires were mailed to a weighted sample of farm operators in all Tennessee…

Farm and ranch operators in North Dakota (n=933) and Texas (n=1,020) were randomly surveyed in 1985 to determine the relationship of financial conditions to levels of off-farm employment by farm operators and spouses. The overall response rate was 75%. Off-farm employment was measured by number of days the farmer or spouse was employed off of the…

The rural Australian recession resulting from lower commodity prices and poor weather conditions raised concerns about how people were coping in the bush. A survey was distributed to all grazing properties in 10 shires of central western Queensland. Of 1,050 surveys distributed, 223 were returned representing 284 families and 914 individuals.…

While many recent publications have explored aging in rural America, virtually none have examined differences within a rural environment in terms of public policy issues. It is very likely, however, that residing on a farm has different consequences than residing in a village. The elderly in the country may be particularly disadvantaged when they…

Although in the past farmers have not been a traditional client group for personal and career counselors, the recent financial plight of farm families has resulted in farmers being identified as a special target group by the Canadian government. Programs, such as the Canadian Rural Transition Program (CRTP), have been established to provide…

Restructuring of U.S. agriculture ("neoindustrialization") is having important effects on rural residents, requiring adaptations of supporting institutions such as education. Neoindustrialization involves concentration, specialization, and vertical and horizontal integration of agricultural production and marketing, as well as further…

This paper presents an anthropological description of "compadrazgo" (cogodparenthood) as a sociocultural institution in a state owned sugar cane plantation in the southeastern part of the Dominican Republic. The enthnohistory of the compadrazgo cultural complex is outlined and the institution's roots in ancient Europe before its…

Following a nationwide drought in 1982, the Australian government instituted the National Property Management Planning program to build skills in the rural community to better manage the farm business, including the need to manage change. In Victoria, the program is delivered through the Farm$mart project. Farm$mart is: learner centered; involves…

This paper examines the gender order that operates in rural areas of Australia, ensuring that women are accorded secondary status, that their contributions are discounted, and that their concerns are trivialized. Women are disadvantaged by patriarchal gender relations that dominate rural society and that are reinforced by ideologies of family and…

Economic and demographic changes have affected Cooperative Extension programing. At its inception, extension's primary clientele were rural community members in production agriculture. Although extension has been urbanized, it remains agricultural. Recent declines in farm numbers are due to economic distress, environmental concern, the energy…

Two Central Illinois farming communities (one Amish and one non-Amish) were selected for this study on the basis of preliminary interviews with individuals knowledgeable about communities in this geographic area in which residents generally assist one another in times of need, rather than seek outside help. Residents of Amish communities and some…

Presenting a model for the comparative analysis of farm organizations, this paper analyzes the farm firm as a complex organization; identifies key structural dimensions of an agricultural production unit; and reviews various organizational perspectives for their utility in understanding and explaining the behavior of farm operations and farm…