Perceptions, attitudes and their role in the process of appropriation of digital technologies
Written by Francisco Hidalgo and Carolina Pirola
Despite the opportunities offered by digital technologies in agricultural production, there are still low levels of appropriation in the field. In recent years, researchers and organizations have tried to obtain data about the incorporation of these tools in the agricultural sector, but few have ventured to give concrete numbers because the data vary greatly and are generally based on partial samples. However, the variables that play a part in the appropriation or non-appropriation of technologies have been studied more successfully – they range from factors related to access and the expertise required, to technical factors such as usability, compatibility and the relevance of information provided. It is important, however, to consider the role played by psychological factors in the appropriation of digital technologies. Among those factors, resistance to change, perception of similarity or compatibility, and trust are particularly important.
Picture by Francisco Hidalgo
Resistance to change their way of working
For most producers, digital technologies are something new. In many cases, their knowledge comes from their personal experience and the experience of others in a process of continuous interaction with the field and the people. In this process, producers have developed habits, customs and practices that many do not feel the need to change. This should not be seen as a lack of interest in innovation – the transition to new varieties; the incorporation of chemical inputs; the introduction of machinery, and the exploration of new forms of processing coffee are evidence of an innovative attitude on the part of farmers. However, in the case of digital technologies, the challenge is different – rather than an improvement of existing practices, these technologies propose a new way of working. This includes integrating the digital world (related to the creation, collection and dissemination of information) and the physical world (the crop, the farm, the quality attributes of the coffee).
Ways of overcoming this resistance range from designing digital tools to resemble traditional practices (digital simulations of notebooks for record keeping, or of physical markets for coffee sales, for example) to integrating the solutions with these practices without replacing them.
The greater the perception of similarity, the greater the appropriation
Perceived similarity or compatibility relates to users' assessment of whether technologies are in line with their own interests, perspectives and values: the greater the perception of similarity, the greater the acceptability. Therefore, tools must not only be compatible with the user's forms of communication (e.g., using the same units of measurement or regional or local terms). In a deeper sense, they must respond to their needs and be framed in the same value system. It is not the same to develop a tool for organic production as for a conventional system, as production systems vary and are based on different values.
For appropriation to exist, producers must be able to recognize the existence of such compatibility. Developing effective communication processes with the user is necessary if tools are to be implemented effectively.
Building trust to foster appropriation
A user's decision-making process about appropriating digital innovations includes assessing whether the results or information presented by the tool can be trusted. For example, a perceived lack of familiarity with digital technologies, or past bad experiences can sow skepticism. In fact, as Colombian sociologist Orlando Fals Borda identified during his work with rural communities in the Andean region, rural development processes based on interventionist or colonizing models, as well as the lack of tangible results, have created distrust of initiatives coming from outside their group in some rural communities.
Similar to what happens with resistance to change, cooperation among stakeholders is required for the innovation process to succeed – and for cooperation to occur, there must be trust. In fact, suspicion towards the organization that promotes a tool weighs more in the decision to not use a technology than distrust in the solution itself.
In addition, the lack of interaction and familiarity with these technologies can generate low levels of confidence in one's own capabilities, which also hinders their appropriation. It is common to hear coffee producers express their lack of experience, how unfamiliar they are with computers or digital applications, and how this generates a perception of inability that inhibits them from exploring technologies further.
Thus, we can identify at least three levels of confidence that play an important role in the appropriation of digital tools – confidence in the technologies themselves, confidence in the organizations that promote them, and confidence in one's own skills – and working on all three is crucial for the successful implementation of innovations.
Picture by Francisco Hidalgo
Co-innovation for appropriation
The above points to two key ideas: On the one hand, it highlights that the process of appropriation of technologies is connected to factors related to the way we think and the attitudes we build. Therefore, these factors must be taken into account during the development processes. On the other hand, it shows that the great challenges of appropriation need to be addressed from an approach of cooperation, participation and inclusion – all of these, considered within the perspective of co-innovation.
Developed by researchers such as Elsa Berthet and Laurens Klerkx, the term co-innovation stems from the rural sociology field. It emerged as a way to overcome the barriers to the appropriation of new technologies by changing vertical practices of technology diffusion to give way to a horizontal, inclusive and decentralized model in the design and implementation of innovations. Since some of the major obstacles to the appropriation of digital solutions have a significant psychological component, it is essential that this new model includes end users by taking into account their needs, interests and values in the process of conceptualization and development of digital solutions. Otherwise, the degree of implementation of these solutions may be limited.
Francisco Hidalgo
Francisco has a B.Sc. in Ecology from Javeriana University (Bogotá, Colombia, 2006) and an M.Sc. in Sustainable Resource Management from the Technische Universität München (2015). Francisco worked for six years in certification processes in coffee production in Colombia and is currently pursuing his PhD at the University of Hohenheim (Stuttgart). His research focuses on the social and political aspects of the digitalization processes in the coffee value chain.