A Case Study Investigating Farmers' View Regarding Soil Analysis: Estimates Using a Logit Model

Abstract

The objective of this study was to assess the level of knowledge of the Turkish farmers with regard to fertilizer usage. Farmers in the Kazova district of Turkey's Tokat Province were interviewed regarding their soil maintenance practices. The interview was based on a standardized questionnaire the answers being recorded at the time of interview. Simple random sampling method was used to determine the sample size of the research. According to the results, sample size was determined as 61 farmers. The fundamental question (dependent variable) was to determine if farmers have the soil in their fields analysed. The independent variables were: education level of farmers (EDU); whether the farmer shares information regarding fertilization (EI); whether the farmer sows according to the results of the soil analysis (SA); whether the farmer uses pesticides (UPI); and the level of concern the farmer has for production rate (PQ). With the exception of farmers' concern over production rate (PQ), all the independent variables had a positive effect on weather or not farmers have the soil in their fields analysed. The econometric model selected for the analysis is a binomial logit model in which the dependent variables take only two values: either 1 or 0. Cronbach's Alpha coefficient was calculated as 0.7358.