Evaluating Horticultural Site Visits and Individual Teaching Activities in Extension

Horticultural Extension professionals spend much time and effort on one-on-one email, telephone, office, and on-site consultations. This group has expressed challenges in evaluating the many landscape site visits and other individual consultations they conduct and may report these activities as only participatory contacts even when they result in greater levels of outcome. Time constraints and diversity of individual contact teaching are major barriers to evaluating this activity, while building cooperative relationships and demonstrating environmental and financial outcomes are major benefits. This commentary emphasizes the importance of focusing on evaluating this area and provides recommendations for practice and further resource development

Virtual Focus Groups in Extension: A Useful Approach to Audience Analysis

As change agents, Extension educators may begin their program planning by identifying the audience\u27s perceived barriers and benefits to adopting some behavior that will benefit the community. Extension professionals and researchers have used in-person focus groups to understand an audience, and they can also administer them as technology-based virtual focus groups. This article discusses the benefits and disadvantages of using this methodology and presents recommended best management practices

Using Commitment as a Tool to Promote Behavior Change in Extension Programming

Social marketing is an approach used to encourage behavior change among a specific target audience. Social marketing offers a number of tools, and Extension programming that targets behavior change could improve outcomes by incorporating the commitment tool. Commitment has been effective in natural resources campaigns that encourage sustainable behavior change. This article discusses the concept of commitment and different ways that this social marketing strategy can be used to promote behavior change through Extension programming

Using Social Marketing Principles to Understand an Extension Audience’s Landscape Water Conservation Practices

A substantial amount of water is applied to Florida landscapes, and encouraging water conservation through irrigation practices has been identified as a priority programming area where there is great opportunity to positively affect the state’s water resources. Florida Extension addresses this priority area through educational programming. Social marketing has been identified as a promising approach to changing behaviors that influence environmental issues, such as water-saving irrigation technologies and practices. This approach recognizes that there are barriers that prevent individuals from engaging in positive behavior changes. This study evaluated an irrigation seminar using a retrospective pretest-posttest design that incorporated elements of a social marketing intercept survey. Thirty-four attendees participated and primarily represented green industry professional and government sectors. Study objectives were to evaluate the workshop and describe the audience using social marketing principles for future program planning based on audience research. The audience rated their descriptive norms, a strong predictor of behavioral change, lower than their injunctive norms, a less robust predictor. The majority planned to adopt at least one water-conservation best management practice as a result of the workshop. We make recommendations for applying social marketing principles to Extension programming

An Examination of the Use of the Framework of Social Marketing to Achieve Environmental Sustainability in International Agricultural and Extension Education

An integrated literature review was conducted to describe a technique for promoting environmentally sustainable behavior change and encourage discussion and use of this approach among international extension educators across the globe. Campaigns from several countries which incorporated varying elements of social marketing were examined using a structured framework that included: audience segmentation; research-based analysis of an audience’s perceptions toward the behavior; the articulation of specific, measurable behavioral goals; and the use of social marketing tools and other principles (e.g., social norms, messaging, commitment, incentives/disincentives, prompts and reminders, and a participatory approach). Consideration for human behavior was lacking in the majority of campaigns, and many could have increased their impact by incorporating additional social marketing elements. A second stage of the literature review was conducted to illustrate the social marketing principles and tools that made up the framework. The first stage included the examination of nine environmental behavior change campaigns, while the second stage integrated an additional 30 resources. It was determined that there is a gap in the literature documenting social marketing practices being used to encourage environmentally sustainable behavior change around the globe. A call is made for increased education and documentation of the elements of social marketing to encourage environmental sustainabilit

Examining the Potential Role of Descriptive Norms in Landscape Water Conservation Programs

The study reported here was conducted to inform potential social norms approaches to water conservation programs. Using a theoretically informed survey instrument, we examined Floridians\u27 perceived descriptive norms of close-peer, neighborhood, state, and national groups pertaining to water conservation. Respondents perceived that people conserved less as groups became more distant and perceived that conservation among close peers was most strongly related to their own conservation practices. When we considered perceptions of the four groups together, we found that only perceptions of close peers\u27 conservation efforts significantly predicted respondents\u27 conservation behaviors. Our findings revealed opportunities to highlight descriptive norms as an Extension strategy, especially among clientele\u27s close peers

Understanding Residential Irrigation Users to Target Water Conservation Extension Programs

Water scarcity is one of the most important current issues, and Extension can play a role in helping people conserve water in the home landscape. Residential irrigation users make up an important target audience. The study reported here showed that residential irrigators are different from the general public in important ways. Home irrigation users value clean water more, value plentiful water less, and perceive stronger positive governmental support for water conservation. Extension professionals can target programs to this critical audience by partnering with governmental organizations and working to help home irrigation users understand the impacts of irrigation practices on both water quantity and water quality

Characteristics of Home Irrigation Users: Implications for Encouraging Landscape Water Conservation in the United States

Home irrigation users are a relatively under-researched target audience for Extension, yet they are major consumers of water. To promote water conservation practices, Extension professionals need to understand key aspects of this group. For example, the home irrigation user participants in the study described here perceive water to be extremely important. They engage in water conservation by following water restrictions, are interested in irrigation technologies that save water, desire home and garden landscaping ideas, and prefer to get water conservation information from websites. However, their interaction with Extension is somewhat limited. To more effectively engage with this audience, Extension should provide relevant water conservation information on well-branded websites

Comparing Linkages Between Descriptive Norms and Current and Intended Outdoor Water Conservation

The study presented here was used for evaluating how theory of planned behavior variables (attitude, perceived behavioral control, subjective norms) and perceptions of others\u27 outdoor water conservation (descriptive norms) related to individuals\u27 own conservation and intent to conserve. The theory of planned behavior predicted current and intended conservation similarly. Descriptive norms from close-peer and state referent groups improved predictions of current practices but not behavioral intentions. Descriptive norms may be more influential when Extension clients are establishing routines pertaining to outdoor water conservation (e.g., installing a new landscape). Extension professionals should strategically communicate a conservation norm at similar opportune times

Perspectives on Place-Based Local Leadership Programs: Fostering Leadership and Community Attachment in Youths

Leadership development, service learning, place-based education, and economic revitalization are topics relevant to Extension. We performed an evaluation to determine whether a place-based leadership program in Clermont County, Ohio, helps students develop leadership skills and encourages their return to the community. Program evaluation data collected via a web-based survey indicated that 80% of youths planned to return to the area to live and work, an action that would contribute to revitalization of the community. Extension professionals can use findings from our evaluation as a basis for improving existing programs, structuring new youth leadership initiatives, and communicating the value of place-based youth leadership programs to stakeholders