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5669

Innovativeness,	Self	-	Confidence	and	Trainings	Undergone	by	the	
Organic Vegetable Farmers 

M.Priyadharshini1, J.Venkata Pirabu 2, T.N. Sujeetha3 and M. Asokhan4 

ABSTRACT
 A study was taken up among the organic farmers in the Coimbatore and Erode 
districts of Tamilnadu to assess the innovativeness, self-confidence and trainings 
undergone by them. 

Keywords : Innovativeness, Self - confidence, Trainings undergone, Organic  
         farming.

1-Ph.D Scholar and 4-Professor & Head, Department of Agricultural Extension & Rural Sociology, TNAU, 
Coimbatore.  2-Professor (Agricultural Extension), Agricultural Research Station, Bhavanisagar, Erode and
 3- Research Associate, e-Extension, TNAU, Coimbatore.
Received : 07-09-2016; Accepted : 02-10-2016

 Almost a century of development, 
organic agriculture is now being 
embraced by the mainstream and shows 
promising results commercially, socially 
and environmentally. While there is 
continuum of thought from earlier days 
to the present, the modern organic 
movement is radically different from its 
original form. It now has environmental 
sustainability at its core in addition to 
the founders concerns for healthy soil, 
healthy food and healthy people. The 
Indian state of Tamil Nadu also has taken 
to organic agriculture on a resonable 
scale. A study on the innovativeness and 
self-confidence of the organic famers 
would go a long very in formulating 
appropriate extension strategies. 

METHODOLOGY
 The present study was conducted 
in Coimbatore and Erode districts of 

Tamil Nadu. The objective of the study 
necessitates the selection of districts 
where organic vegetable crops are 
predominantly being cultivated. Based on 
the interaction with officials from Tamil 
Nadu Organic Certification Department 
(TNOCD), Coimbatore and KVK, Erode,  
Erode district was selected where 
maximum number of organic farmers are 
found. 

 A sample size of 180 organic 
vegetable farmers was fixed for the 
study. Based on the interaction with 
officials and perusing documents from 
the Directorate of Tamil Nadu Organic 
Certification Department in Coimbatore 
district and KVK, Gobichettipalayam, 
Erode, a sample of 90 organic vegetable 
farmers from each district comprising 
180 organic farmers were selected using 
simple random sampling technique.

Journal of Extension Education
Vol. 28  No. 2,  2016

Research Note



5670

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

Innovativeness Among the Organic 
Vegetable Farmers

 The distribution of the farmers 
according to their level of innovativeness 
Indicates that that more than two-thirds 
(67.80%) of the respondents came under 
medium level of innovativeness, followed 
by low (22.20%) and high (10.00%) levels 
respectively.

 The possible reason for the above 
result might be due to that because of 
the moderate level of information seeking 
behaviour, the respondents were aware 
about the new organic practices and also 
had the motivation to adopt them. 

Self-Confidence	 Among	 the	 Organic	
Vegetable Farmers

 The distribution of the farmers 
according to their level of self confidence 
indicates that majority (81.10%) of the 
respondents possessed medium level 
followed by low (10.00%) and high (8.90%) 
levels of self confidence respectively.

 The possible reason for the above 
result might be due to the reason that 
majority of the respondents attended 
training programmes regularly. This 
led to their good exposure  regarding 
organic farming. This encouraged the 
farmers to gain self confidence in organic 
farming even though they were getting 
very less yield initially. This finding is in 

accordance with the findings of Selvarani 
(2006).

Trainings Undergone by the Organic 
Vegetable Farmers

 The distribution of the farmers 
based on their trainings undergone is 
given in Table 1.

Table 1. 
Distribution of Respondents Based on 

their Trainings Undergone                                 
(n=180)

Sl

No.
Categories Number Percent-age

1. None 23 12.80

2. One 3 1.60
3. More than 

one
154 85.60

Total 180 100.00

 From Table 1, it could be inferred 
that majority (85.60%) of the respondents 
had undergone more than one training.  
This finding is in accordance with the 
findings of Tamilselvi (2002).

 From the data, it could be 
understood that most of the respondents 
had been exposed to training programmes. 
Tamil Nadu Agricultural University 
(TNAU) also plays a vital role in this, as 
a separate department i.e. Department 
of Sustainable Organic Agriculture, is 
functioning in the university. NGOs also 
give training to the organic farmers i n 
t h e  r e g i o n .

Journal of Extension Education



5671

REFERENCES
Remya, M. & George, A. (2015). Impact 

of training on adoption and knowledge 
again in facilitators of People’s Rural 
Education Movement (PREM). Journal 
of Extension Education, 27(4)

Selvarani, G. (2006). A Study on 
Functioning and Role of Self - Help 

Groups towards Socio - Economic 
Empowerment. Unpublished Ph.D. 
Thesis, AC & RI, TNAU, Coimbatore.

Tamilselvi, G. (2002). Entrepreneurial 
Behaviour of Women Leaders in 
Agriculture. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, 
Annamalai University, Annamalai 
Nagar. 

Innovativeness, Self - Confidence and Trainings Undergone by the Organic Vegetable Farmers