Impact of Social Capital on Smallholder Farmers Agricultural Innovation Adoption

Abstract

In the contemporary world, when a new technology is introduced to farmers, not only do individual and household factors such as risk attitudes, wealth and resource endowments affect a farm household’s likelihood of technology adoption but probably more importantly, social capital structures also appear to matter. Social capital concept is witnessing an increasing usage in circles of community development work and researches, and within its various constructions has been linked to agriculture and farming communities. Most agricultural communities are geographically defined and this facilitates through the locality development approach, emphasizing the importance of self-help and mutual aid in building better communities within identified areas and occupations. In this paper, we have discussed the relationship between social capital and agriculture, with specific focus on community development. We recognize the importance of community connections and its resultant social capital emergence, leading us to show how these societal ties and norms will be resourceful in making a community to develop, an explanation that recognizes the potential positive advantages of social capital development, which could help community development workers and society members build communities that truly promotes agriculture in the rural areas.  Social capital has been focus of many researchers in recent years. Development of communities is a continuous process in order to sustain communities through utilizing their assets in a world that is increasingly becoming unpredictable and difficult in terms of togetherness and caring concerns for sustainability and productivity. Social capital in agriculture was reviewed from rural community perspectives and seen as a motivating and attaching force for the agrarian societies that benefits the agriculture. This review tries to capture some of the existing social capital and their contribution in rural agrarian societies. The development of social capital as unseen capital in any society will provide the community members the force to forge ahead in whatever self-help endeavor their community resolved to undertake. This review paper also considers the other side of the coin and looked at marginal community members that did not subscribe to social capital and became excluded from the beneficial collective actions of the majority. Social capital in agricultural communities will go a long way in empowering community members to sustainably produce food and develop their communities. This suggests the need to support farmer-based organizations and improve information channels related to input and output market information, credit and insurance.

Keywords: Social capital, Innovation Adoption, Impact and smallholder farmers.

DOI: 10.7176/ISDE/16-1-01

Publication date: July 31st 2026