
































Microsoft Word - 341-Final.docx


   Advancements in Agricultural Development 
  Volume 4, Issue 3, 2023 
  agdevresearch.org 

 

1. Rachel BIderman, Graduate Assistant, University of Florida, 408 Rolfs Hall, PO Box 110540 Gainesville, FL 32611, 

rbiderman@ufl.edu,  https://orcid.org/0009-0001-9738-5896 
2. Laura Greenhaw, Assistant Professor, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110540 Gainesville 32611, laura.greenhaw@ufl.edu,  

 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1562-9798 
3. Amy Harder, Associate Dean for Extension, 1378 Storrs Rd., Unit 4134, W.B. Young Building, Room 233, Storrs, CT  06269, 

amy.harder@uconn.edu,  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7042-2028    

 

 
16 

 

Exploring Small-Scale Farmers’ Perceptions and Needs for 
Non-Formal Leadership Education  

 
R. Biderman1, L. Greenhaw2, A. Harder3 

 
 

Article History 
Received: May 10, 2023 
Accepted: July 5, 2023 
Published: July 20, 2023 
 
 
Keywords 
small-scale farmers; self-perception 
theory; qualitative research; 
agricultural leadership educators  

Abstract 
Small-scale farmers serve in leadership roles within their operations and 
beyond, though it is not widely known whether they view themselves in 
this capacity. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the 
ways in which small-scale farmers perceive themselves as leaders, and to 
characterize their self-perceived leadership style. Semi-structured 
interviews were conducted with participants on their farming operations 
and utilizing Zoom. Observations and collection of supplemental 
materials were used for triangulation of data. Findings indicated that this 
population does view themselves as leaders, and that small-scale farmers 
characterize their leadership approaches differently, though some 
commonalities were found. Moreover, a desire for leadership education 
was expressed by participants. A needs assessment is recommended to 
better understand small-scale farmers' leadership education needs, 
followed by non-formal leadership education programming.  

 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   17 
 

Introduction and Problem Statement 
 
Small farms are an integral part of a sustainable food system, providing benefits economically, 
geographically, and culturally (Stępień & Maican, 2020) and their success relies on farm 
operators’ knowledge, skills, and behavior. Farmers can serve in multiple leadership roles, on 
their operations and within their communities. However, it is not known whether these farmers 
view themselves as leaders, or how they serve as leaders in different capacities. Moreover, 
although small farm operators presumably perform necessary leadership and management acts 
on their operation, it is unlikely that they have received formal leadership education to help 
develop these necessary skills. Unfortunately, existing leadership development programs in 
agriculture and natural resources may not be appropriate or accessible for small-scale farmers 
(Carter & Rudd, 2000; Kelsey & Wall, 2003). 
 
Leadership skills are vital in the agriculture industry (Kaufman et al., 2012) helping agriculture 
leaders in production, distribution, and education sectors steward large operations and 
programs. Farming, and agriculture work in general, is a volatile profession, dealing with 
climate change, harsh conditions, market fluctuations, inflation, and other challenges which 
require leaders to be adaptable and able to build and maintain networks and learning 
communities to succeed (Moghfeli et al., 2022; Sorensen et al., 2021). Windon and Robotham 
(2021) found that farmers may have the ability to lead others, though targeted leadership 
programming is necessary to address identified areas of need among farmers (Windon & 
Robotham, 2021). It is important that farmers view themselves as leaders, because if individuals 
believe themselves to be leaders, they will develop and emerge leadership skills (Kwok et al., 
2018). This study sought to explore small-scale farmers’ leadership self-perceptions and identify 
potential leadership education needs.  
 

Theoretical Framework 
 
One way to view leadership and leadership development is through the concept of self or 
identity (Bem, 1972) which goes beyond viewing leadership through theories, such as trait 
theory, and posits that individuals’ beliefs, attitudes, and feelings impact the way they view 
themselves as leaders (Day & Harrison, 2007). Self-perception theory, introduced by Bem 
(1972), originated in the field of psychology to help explain consistencies among individuals’ 
beliefs and behaviors. Individuals learn about their beliefs, feelings, attitudes, and other 
internal states by observing themselves and making inferences about their behavior and 
surroundings. Self-perception theory states that as individuals, we are coming to understand 
ourselves the same way that an outsider or stranger may come to know us, through 
observations about our external behaviors, intentions, and cues.  
 
According to Drath (2001), leaders can experience varying levels of identity, which informs how 
they view leadership. At the most basic level, a leader views leadership as possessing a specific 
set of behaviors or knowledge, and involves a process of the leader leading, and the followers 
following. At the next level, known as the relational level, the process of leading is an act of 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   18 
 

influencing the follower, and works more as a negotiation between the two parties. At the most 
complex level, leadership is collaborative and involves all perspectives, utilizing a systems-based 
approach (Day & Harrison, 2007; Sessa et al., 2016). Kwok et al. (2018) explored how social 
networks impact leader identity, and subsequently leader emergence. They proposed that 
identities that impact behavior most are those most important to individuals (central), and if 
individuals believe themselves to be leaders, they will develop and emerge leadership skills. 
Additionally, individuals who view themselves as leaders are likely situated within strong social 
networks or hold leadership positions within their organizations (Kwok et al., 2018). 
 
Agricultural leadership skills have been examined using a self-perception lens in previous 
studies. Layfield et al. (2000) studied 58 college agriculture students to assess their self-
perceived leadership skills in correlation to their involvement with campus activities. Their 
findings indicated that students viewed themselves as having high leadership skills, and there 
was a positive correlation between high self-perceived leadership skills and participation in 
departmental clubs (Layfield et al., 2000). Similarly, Rutherford et al. (2002) explored Future 
Farmers of America (FFA) members’ self-perceived leadership skills in correlation to chapter 
size, length of membership, involvement, and leadership position. They found that involvement 
and holding leadership positions within FFA was positively related to members’ self-perceived 
leadership skills (Rutherford et al., 2002). Harder and Narine (2019) found that Extension agents 
had high self-perceptions of their leadership competencies, however, one of the lower-scored 
competencies was engaging in crucial conversations, which is consistent with Windon and 
Robotham’s (2021) findings. No literature has been identified concerning leadership self-
perceptions of small-scale farmers. Therefore, we sought to understand small-scale farmers’ 
leadership styles, through the lens of their own self-perceptions. 
 

Purpose 
 
Our study aimed to explore small-scale farmers’ leadership self-perceptions and identify 
potential leadership education needs. The following questions guided this study: 
Q1: In what ways do small farm operators view themselves as leaders within their farm 

operations and beyond? 
Q2: How do small farm operators define leadership?   
Q3: How do small farm operators characterize their personal leadership style? 
 

Methods 
 
The population for this research study was small-scale farmers. According to the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture (USDA), small-scale farms have a Gross Cash Farm Income (GCFI) of 
less than $350,000 per year (Whitt et al., 2021). The inclusion criteria for this study were: (a) 
the farm was geographically located in Florida (b) study participants considered themselves the, 
or one of the farms’ principal owner/operators, and (c) study participants identified themselves 
as a small-scale farmer. The study took place October 2022 through January 2023. 
 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   19 
 

Purposive sampling was used to secure participants who met the inclusion criteria. A contact 
list of potential participants was generated from three sources; personal contacts of an industry 
consultant, online resources such as farmers market participant directories, and snowball 
sampling. All farmers identified were emailed a total of three times, consisting of an initial 
recruitment email, and two follow-up emails. Eighty-two farmers were contacted, ten 
responded, and eight completed interviews. 
 
Our study is not intended to be generalized to all small-scale farmers, but we have provided 
additional details about them to help the reader determine transferability to the audiences 
they may serve. Pseudonyms were assigned to protect participants’ confidentiality. 
Participants’ operations varied in size, location, and crop type. Three farmers work on a 
collective farm: Alice is a co-operator of their operation, while Sandy and Kandace both rent 
space on a collective farm. Greg and Cheryl both own their property, though Greg operates on a 
25-acre farm, and Cheryl operates on 1.5 acres. Ernest rents land to run his operation, Mabel is 
the leader of a community farm in a food desert, and Ralph manages an aquaponics farm.   
 
The farmers’ ages ranged from 30 to 70 years, with the average being 48 years old. The farmers 
identified as male (n = 3), female (n = 4) and non-binary (n = 1). All farmers had some post-
secondary education, with a master’s degree being the highest level of education (n = 2), a 
bachelor’s degree being the most represented degree (n = 4), one farmer receiving an associate 
degree, and one farmer completing some college. Additional details are provided in Table 1. 
 
Table 1  
 
Participant Demographics 
Participant Age Gender Ethnicity Highest Level of Education 

Cheryl 59 Female Indian Associate degree 

Greg 70 Male American/White Master’s Degree 

Ralph 47 Male Latino/White Bachelor’s Degree 

Mabel 73 Female Caucasian Bachelor’s Degree 

Kandace 32 Female Caucasian Master’s Degree 

Sandy 39 Female Caucasian Some College 

Alice 30 Non-Binary White Bachelor’s Degree 

Ernest 36 Male White Bachelor’s Degree 
 
A basic qualitative research design (Merriam, 2002) utilized semi-structured, in-depth 
interviews. Five interviews were conducted in person and three interviews were conducted on 
Zoom. Six participants were interviewed one-on-one, and two participants were interviewed 
together in a dyad. On average, interviews were 52 minutes long. The lead researcher recorded 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   20 
 

notes during and after each interview, using an electronic field journal to capture body 
language, impressions about attitude and temperament during the interview, and observations 
of the operations and interactions with team members. Additionally, the field journal was used 
to capture memo notes of findings as the data was coded.  
 
Interviews were audio-recorded and uploaded to Otter.ai for transcription. Codes were created 
and assigned based on the interview guide and theoretical framework. Codes were categorized 
and used to create a codebook within NVivo software that “articulates the distinctive 
boundaries for each code” (Creswell & Poth, 2018, p. 190). The lead researcher used the 
codebook to assign tags to pieces of text and then arranged the text segments that were similar 
into categories for organization into major themes (DiCicco-Bloom & Crabtree, 2006). Once this 
step was completed for all interviews, the lead researcher reviewed the documents again and 
began assigning memos, which refer to concepts or themes that begin to emerge from the 
codes (Creswell & Poth, 2018). A total of 42 codes were assigned that were categorized into 10 
over-arching themes.   
 
Trustworthiness in qualitative research is achieved through credibility, dependability, 
confirmability, and transferability. Credibility was achieved by collecting multiple forms of data, 
including communication examples, pictures of farm operations, analysis of websites, and on-
site observations (Forero et al., 2018). Dependability involved peer debriefing, in which the lead 
research shared findings and conclusions with colleagues familiar with the research and topic 
area, who then reviewed the interpretations and provided feedback on the analysis (Creswell & 
Poth, 2018). Member checking and peer debriefing were also used to ensure dependability 
(Loh, 2013). Member checking allows the “participants to judge the accuracy and credibility of 
the account” (Creswell & Poth, 2018, p. 261).  Transcripts were sent to the participants to 
review for accuracy. Confirmability was achieved by reporting negative and realistic data that 
may not support answering the research questions and continuing to clarify personal biases and 
reflexivity throughout the research process. Lastly, transferability was achieved through 
purposive sampling and collecting detailed data. 
 

Findings 
 
Q1: In what ways do small farm operators view themselves as leaders within their farm 
operations and beyond? 
Our study participants viewed themselves as leaders in three ways: on their operation, within 
their community and the farming industry, and within their families. Participants used the word 
community to mean their geographic community, as well as a network of other small-scale 
farmers. It was evident throughout the interviews that all participants viewed themselves as 
leaders of their operations. Alice stated “On our operation I see myself as a leader to our crew. 
Someone who is willing to take on the responsibility of managing what feels like a giant farm 
sometimes.” Some farmers were more hesitant to come to identify as leaders than others. 
Cheryl stated that she identified as a leader in both her operation and the community, however 
she felt like a leader more within her community. As Cheryl talked about being a leader in this 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   21 
 

capacity, she seemed proud of what she had been able to accomplish alone, setting an example 
for other farms in her community. 
 
Many study participants also viewed themselves as leaders within their community and 
industry. Three participants operated using a collective farming model, and the success of their 
respective operations is evident as to why these farmers felt they were leaders in their 
community and industry. Alice specifically talked about how they were operating using a 
structure that is somewhat unique, and that they are often asked to share about how they do 
this, setting an example for others in their community. Alice stated:  

As a farm, I see us as a leader in the community, because of how we set things up. I 
think that we're really doing something amazing by having a horizontal leadership role 
like this, splitting up the major responsibilities…I know that in the long term, we are one 
of the only farms that's been able to maintain our sustainability and excitement and 
ease at which we farm. 

 
When Sandy spoke about being a leader in her community, she passionately described a social 
justice aspect, wanting to help individual people regain their power. Sandy said “when I think 
about community leadership, it’s like the ability to allow an individual to regain personal power. 
And so that's the vision, how we would come together.” This idea was also evident in Ernest’s 
comments about “bringing the food to where the people are” and Greg’s desire to want to 
mentor young farmers and empower them to farm. 
 
Some participants viewed themselves as leaders within their families. Greg runs what 
the USDA classifies as a retirement farm, while others run an occupation farm, in which 
their sole income is generated from their farming operation. When Greg was asked if he 
views himself as a leader he said, “I would say yes, for my closest family, whenever they 
do help me on the farm…at least I'm the leader in that sense if they come out and help 
me.” Because Greg operates his farm part-time, it is understandable that he would 
utilize the help of his family, instead of paying employees to work on the farm.  
 
When considering their identity as a leader within specific spaces, participants felt it was 
necessary to clarify what they meant by the term leader. Ralph distinguished between leader 
and manager, stating that leader is sometimes an idea, and a manager is more concrete. 
Additionally, Ernest’s view of himself as a leader changed throughout the conversation. He said: 

…with respect to the business, I'm not thinking of myself as the fearless leader of this 
small farm as much as the guy that started things. I've been there a long time. So, when 
people have questions, they know to come to me, you know? 

 
However, when asked to clarify that he did not view himself as a leader on the operation, but 
perhaps in other capacities, Ernest replied “I guess through the lens of that question, I would 
say yes, I view myself as the leader of the farm as an entity, as a business, but I don't think of 
the role of leader very often.” Throughout the interviews, it was evident that study participants 
did view themselves as leaders in varying capacities. 
 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   22 
 

Q2: How do small farm operators define leadership? 
Study participants had varied definitions of leadership. Considering the diversity of study 
participants, varied definitions of leadership are congruent with leadership research. However, 
three themes emerged from data analysis concerning their definitions of leadership: (a) 
leadership involves teaching others how to do something; (b) leadership includes leading by 
example/by doing, and (c) leadership requires being decisive and being the one to make 
decisions, while still maintaining flexibility. 
 
Teaching Others 
The data revealed that one of the important parts of leadership to participants was the ability 
to teach others how to do something, so that a goal can be achieved. Cheryl’s measure of 
success as a leader relied on whether her employees and volunteers were able to do the job 
after she had showed them how to do it. Greg also talked about the importance of teaching 
people by ‘showing them.’ When asked how he might teach someone to pick persimmons, Greg 
walked over to a tree and began to explain how he would teach them, using a “show and tell” 
approach. When Ernest defined leadership he said:  

Leadership is helping everyone know what they need, what they should be doing. 
Beyond knowing what to do, feeling good about what they're doing. I've noticed over 
the years that confusion is much more of a problem than just the physical aspect of ‘oh, 
I'm not sure exactly how you want this thing done here.’ So, it's going to take longer. But 
just for the health of everything around, people understand what they have to do, then 
everything runs much, much smoother. 

 
Teaching others on their operations was an important aspect of leadership to study 
participants. 
 
Leading by Example 
Both Ralph and Alice spoke about having done all tasks on the farm themselves, and that they 
compiled a list of tasks with expected completion times, so they knew how long their workers 
would take to complete things. They both conveyed that they will not ask their team members 
to do anything that they have not, or will not, do themselves. When describing the importance 
of modeling work, Ralph stated “if you don't understand what you're asking the people to do, 
or you don't know it, you may either ask for things that they can't do or have unrealistic 
expectations.” Throughout the interview, Alice spoke about how they modeled a strong work 
ethic for their employees, showing their team through example what is expected of them. 
Similarly, Mabel described having her new volunteers work side by side with more seasoned 
volunteers so that they can show them how tasks should be completed. In addition to teaching 
through telling, study participants felt that leadership involved modeling and leading by 
example. 
 
Being Decisive 
Lastly, the study participants shared that decision-making and responsibility fell upon them. 
Mabel expressed confidence in asserting herself as the leader and being comfortable making 
the final decision:  



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   23 
 

I think I'm pretty good at explaining what we're going to do and how we're going to do 
it. And I think without being really harsh, identifying myself as the one that's in 
charge…I'll be the one that makes the final decision. 

 
Alice also spoke about being decisive and the one to make tough decisions. When 
defining leadership, Alice said “I think a lot of it is just being willing to make the decision 
and stick with it and tell other people how you want it done…so, it's a lot of decision 
making.” Similarly, Ernest said “I've absorbed random business advice throughout the 
years and the sensation of being like ‘okay, well, you gotta at some point, be the 
figurehead and just go for it. And you're the one in charge there’.” 
 
Although each definition varied slightly, these small-scale farmers characterized 
leadership as teaching their followers how to do tasks, motivating them through leading 
by example, and being decisive.  
 
Q3: How do small farm operators characterize their personal leadership style? 
It is important to note that when this research study was designed, we anticipated categorizing 
small-scale farmers' leadership styles. However, as the interviews progressed, it became 
evident that we were not characterizing leadership styles, as much as identifying self-perceived 
leadership approaches. This distinction is important, as some of the approaches the participants 
identified may align with traditional leadership theories, while other categories do not. Our 
participants had varying self-perceived leadership approaches, though some approaches shared 
similarities. For research question three, 24 codes were generated using open-coding and then 
condensed into 14 codes by grouping similar codes. Participants most frequently described 
supportive, collaborative, and trusting approaches to leading. In the context of this study, a 
supportive leadership approach included participants expressing care for their employees, 
describing a more hands-on approach to leading, and farmers spoke to mentoring their 
employees. When participants identified with a collaborative approach, they often spoke about 
collaboration among the team, utilizing a collective approach to farming, and asking their 
employees for feedback and input in decision making. Lastly, when a trusting approach was 
identified among participants, they expressed being more hands-off when it came to their 
leadership, they described themselves as easy going, and allowed employees to pick tasks that 
they enjoyed and excelled in.  
 
Greg identified as being supportive and directive. Greg has owned his operation for over 30 
years and described using a supportive and directive approach to manage a very small team of 
volunteers on his “well oiled” operation. When we were in his orchard and I asked him how he 
might teach someone to pick persimmons, he went over to the tree, and began to explain to 
me how he would teach them, saying:  

So, they would come out here and I’d say ‘Okay, we're gonna pick this tree. This is how I 
think you should do it. Look for them at this stage [pointing to an orange persimmon], 
you're gonna see this tree. Just pick the more orange ones. The more orange they get 
the riper they are. Right there [pointing to another ripe persimmon]. That's for market.’ 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   24 
 

I would say this color of orange is perfect. And we'll see if you can find it. But it's kind of 
hard. 

 
When I asked him if any of his helpers ever picked fruit that weren’t ripe yet, and how he 
approached that, he said that he would have to show them why it was not ready to be picked, 
and why that might be a problem at the market:  

Once you get them out there. It's okay. Like I just said, take this one, would be better if 
you would have left it, it's okay. It's okay to sell it. But probably people aren't gonna buy 
it because it's not the most desirable at that stage. 

  
Greg’s leadership approach is “hands-on” and involved physically showing his helpers how to 
harvest the fruit. Sandy also displayed a supportive leadership approach throughout the 
interview. She discussed guiding the people she supervises, and if change is necessary, she can 
call upon her leadership qualities to invite that change. Sandy’s supportive leadership approach 
was evidenced by words she used such as “guide” “invite” and “encouraging.” 
 
Alice spoke often about being collaborative and making decisions with their two co-leaders:  

We make all our big decisions together. We try to have a weekly meeting on Tuesdays. 
And so any big purchases, any hiring, anything new that we haven't already established, 
we do our crop planning together. And anything out of our outside of our role, we just 
talk with the group about it. 

  
Kandace, who works on a collective farm, shared that the farmers communicate through a 
group text and shared calendars. They also utilize monthly in-person meetings and an informal 
majority voting system. This method of communication and management conveyed a very 
collaborative leadership approach, where all members have a say. 
 
Some participants used a more hands-off and trusting approach to leading their teams. Ralph 
said, “Leadership is you delegate work, but you never delegate responsibility.” He explained the 
need to verify that delegated work was completed, but reiterated, “It's my responsibility as a 
manager to make sure that I can delegate, I can't do all the work, it's impossible. I need to 
delegate it, but the responsibility in the end is mine.”  
 
Mabel’s approach can also be categorized as trusting. She described her volunteers as “older, 
mostly retired, and have been working with me for years.” Mabel affords them a great deal of 
autonomy, saying “So, I have a blackboard out there, I leave a list of everything that needs to be 
done. And they come in and they look at the list. And they pick what they like to do.”  While 
walking around her operation during the interview, several volunteers were present, working 
hard, but she did not seem too concerned with what they were doing, or whether they were on 
task. It was clear that she trusted them to do the work and it seemed important to Mabel that 
her team feel autonomous and have fun while working.  
 
 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   25 
 

Conclusions, Discussion, and Recommendations 
 
We explored small-scale farmers’ leadership perceptions, including the ways in which they view 
themselves as leaders, how they define leadership, and their approaches to leading. Our study 
participants identified as leaders of their organizations, within their communities and in their 
families which is consistent with Windon and Robotham’s findings (2021) that farmers had high 
perceptions of their ability to lead others. Some participants self-identified more readily, 
aligning with how Bem (1972) and Fazio (2014) described self-perception as the way in which 
an individual comes to understand themselves through observations of their own behaviors, 
intentions, and ideas. Identifying as a leader has implications for leaders gaining confidence and 
being motivated to develop their abilities (Kwok et al., 2018). If small-scale farmers are hesitant 
to identify as leaders, they may not seek leadership development, which could limit leadership 
capacity within this important agriculture industry sector. Extension practitioners and others 
working with small-scale farmers should encourage this population to strengthen their leader 
identity, which may increase their pursuit of leadership development.   
 
Drath (2001) suggested that leaders’ varying levels of identity inform how they view leadership, 
moving from conceptualizing leadership as possessing specific knowledge and skills, to 
perceiving leadership as relational and an act of influence, and finally, viewing leadership as 
collaborative and inclusive of multiple perspectives. Our participants’ definitions of leadership 
represented Drath’s first and second identity levels. Being decisive is a specific skill, while 
teaching others and leading by example are relational acts of influence. These definitions 
suggest they have moved beyond conceptualizing leadership as possessing certain knowledge 
and skills, to believing there is an important relational aspect. Further leader identity 
development may help them develop a conceptualization of leadership as collaborative and 
inclusive, perhaps motivating them toward leadership roles beyond the small-scale farming 
community to the broader agricultural industry. As small-scale farmers develop their leader 
identities and expand their conceptualization of leadership, Extensionists can support them by 
helping them engage in broader reaching organizations and opportunities. 
 
Participants had not previously studied leadership theories, so it was not expected that they 
identify their leadership styles in this way. However, many of the participants’ self-identified 
leadership approaches were consistent with some leadership theories. The ways in which 
participants described their approaches including supportive, collaborative, and trusting, were 
reminiscent of authentic leadership (George, 2003), path-goal leadership (Evans, 1970), and 
situational leadership (Hersey & Blanchard, 1969) among others. Leadership theories have 
overlapping constructs. Moreover, effective leaders employ a variety of approaches 
(Northouse, 2021). Encouragingly, our participants described varying leadership approaches 
which is consistent with previous research, indicating that leadership approaches and styles 
vary among this population (Jamil et al., 2020; Wanjala et al., 2022). However, these leaders 
may be more effective in their application of varying leadership approaches as their knowledge 
of leadership concepts increases. Increasing this population’s knowledge of leadership concepts 
should produce more informed, and thus effective, leadership choices.   



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   26 
 

 
Lastly, participants revealed a desire for leadership education as they shared about skills they 
wanted to develop and their interest in a leadership development program. Literature indicates 
that existing leadership development programs in agriculture and natural resources may not be 
appropriate or accessible for this unique population (Carter & Rudd, 2000; Kelsey & Wall, 2003). 
Therefore, a formal needs assessment should be conducted to guide the development of more 
appropriate leadership education opportunities for small-scale farmers in Florida. An 
opportunity exists to grow leadership capacity with this agriculture sector.  
 

Acknowledgements 
 
Author Contributions: R. Biderman - conceptualization, formal analysis, investigation, writing-
original draft; L. Greenhaw - conceptualization, writing- review & editing. A. Harder - 
methodology, writing- review & editing 
 

References 

Bem, D. (1972). Self-perception theory. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social 
psychology (Vol. 6, pp. 1–62). Academic Press.  

Carter, H., & Rudd, R. (2000). Evaluation of the Florida leadership program for agriculture and 
natural resources. Journal of Southern Agricultural Education Research, 50(1), 199–205.  

 
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2018). Qualitative inquiry & research design: Choosing among five 

approaches. SAGE.  
 
Day, D. V., & Harrison, M. M. (2007). A multilevel, identity-based approach to leadership 

development. Human Resource Management Review, 17(4), 360–373.  
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2007.08.007 

 
DiCicco-Bloom, B., & Crabtree, B. F. (2006). The qualitative research interview. Medical 

Education, 40(4), 314–321. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2929.2006.02418.x 
 
Drath, W. H. (2001). The deep blue sea: Rethinking the source of leadership. Jossey-Bass.  
 
Evans, M.G. (1970). The effects of supervisory behavior on the path-goal relationship. 

Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 5(3), 277-298. 
https://doi.org/10.1016/0030-5073(70)90021-8 

 
Fazio, R. (2014). Self-perception theory: A current perspective. In Social Influence: The Ontario 

symposium (Vol. 5, pp. 129–134). (Zanna, M. P., Olson, J. M., & Herman, C. P., Eds.). Essay, 
Taylor & Francis.  

 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   27 
 

Forero, R., Nahidi, S., De Costa, J., Mohsin, M., Fitzgerald, G., Gibson, N., McCarthy, S., & 
Aboagye-Sarfo, P. (2018). Application of four-dimension criteria to assess rigour of 
qualitative research in emergency medicine. BMC Health Services Research, 18(1), 120. 
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-018-2915-2 

 
George, B. (2003). Authentic leadership: Rediscovering the secrets to creating lasting value. 

Jossey-Bass. 
 
Harder, A., & Narine, L. (2019). Interpersonal leadership competencies of extension agents in 

Florida. Journal of Agricultural Education, 60(1), 224–233. 
http://doi.org/10.5032/jae.2019.01224  

 
Hersey, P., & Blanchard, K.H. (1969). Life-cycle theory of leadership. Training and Development 

Journal, 23(5), 26-34. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1970-19661-
001?ref=insight.openexo.com  

 
Jamil, M. H., Lanuhu, N., Busthanul, N., Demmallino, E. B., & Melinda, I. (2020). Leadership style 

of farmer group leaders. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 486(1). 
https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/486/1/012035 

 
Kaufman, E. K., Rateau, R. J., Carter, H. S., & Strickland, L. R. (2012). What’s context got to do 
 with it? An exploration of leadership development programs for the agricultural 
 community. Journal of Leadership Education, 11(1), 121–139. 
 https://doi.org/10.12806/v11/i1/rf7 
 
Kelsey, K. D., & Wall, L. J. (2003). Do agricultural leadership programs produce community 

leaders? A case study of the impact an agricultural leadership program on participant’' 
community involvement. Journal of Agricultural Education, 44(4), 35–46. 
http://doi.org/10.5032/jae.2003.04035  

 
Kwok, N., Hanig, S., Brown, D. J., & Shen, W. (2018). How leader role identity influences the 

process of leader emergence: A social network analysis. The Leadership Quarterly, 29(6), 
648–662. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2018.04.003 

 
Layfield, K. D., Radhakrishna, R., & Andreasen, R. (2000). Self-perceived leadership skills of 

students in a leadership programs in agriculture course. Journal of Southern Agricultural 
Education Research, 50(1), 62–74. http://www.jsaer.org/pdf/vol50Whole.pdf#page=62 

 
Loh, J. (2013). Inquiry into issues of trustworthiness and quality in narrative studies: A 

perspective. The Qualitative Report, 18(33), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-
3715/2013.1477 

 
Merriam, S. (2002) Qualitative research in practice: Examples for discussion and analysis. Jossey 

Bass. 



Biderman et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
 

https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v4i3.341   28 
 

 
Moghfeli, Z., Ghorbani, M., Rezvani, M. R., Khorasani, M. A., Azadi, H., & Scheffran, J. (2022). 

Social capital and farmers’ leadership in Iranian rural communities: Application of social 
network analysis. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 6(55), 1–25. 
https://doi.org/10.1080/09640568.2021.2008329  

 
Northouse, P. G. (2021). Leadership: Theory and practice (9th ed.). SAGE Publications. 
 
Rutherford, T. A., Townsend, C. D., Briers, G. E., Cummings, R., & Conrad, C. R. (2002). 

Leadership self-perceptions of WLC participants. Journal of Agricultural Education, 43(2), 
22–33. http://doi.org/10.5032/jae.2002.02022  

Sessa, V., Ploskonka, J., Alvarez, E., Dourdis, S., Dixon, C., & Bragger, J. (2016). The relationship 
between student leaders’ constructive development, their leadership identity, and their 
understanding of leadership. The Journal of Leadership Education, 15(1), 15–30. 
https://doi.org/10.12806/v15/i1/r2   

Sorensen, L.B., Germundsson, L.B., Hansen, S.R., Rojas, C., & Kristensen, N.H. (2021). What skills 
do agricultural professionals need in the transition towards a sustainable agriculture? A 
qualitative literature review. Sustainability, 13(24), 13556. 
https://doi.org/10.3390/su132413556   

 
Stępień, S., & Maican, S (Eds.). (2020). Small farms in the paradigm of sustainable development. 

Case studies of selected Central and Eastern European countries. 
https://doi.org/10.15804/stepien.maican-8.2020 

 
Wanjala A. W., Awuor E., & Ngala M. (2022). The moderated meditating effect of situational 
 leadership and farmer characteristics on the relationship between change management 
 and sugarcane productivity in sugar factory cane catchment areas in Kenya. African 
 Journal of Emerging Issues, 3(9), 34–48.
 https://ajoeijournals.org/sys/index.php/ajoei/article/view/311 
 
Whitt, C., Todd, J. E., & Keller, A. (2021, December). America's diverse family farms: 2021 

edition. USDA ERS. https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/pub-details/?pubid=102807 
 
Windon, S., & Robotham, D. (2021). The relationship between farmers’ quality of life and their 

leadership competencies. Advancements in Agricultural Development, 2(2), 50–72. 
https://doi.org/10.37433/aad.v2i2.105  

 
 
 
© 2023 by authors. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of 
the Creative Commons Attribution license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). 
 


