Crop choices: motivational and decision-making factors that attract and retain cotton-grower employers within the Australian cotton industry

PhD Thesis


Wunsch, Geraldine Madonna. 2019. Crop choices: motivational and decision-making factors that attract and retain cotton-grower employers within the Australian cotton industry. PhD Thesis Doctor of Philosophy. University of Southern Queensland. https://doi.org/10.26192/5f6973c2dccd4
Title

Crop choices: motivational and decision-making factors
that attract and retain cotton-grower employers
within the Australian cotton industry

TypePhD Thesis
Authors
AuthorWunsch, Geraldine Madonna
SupervisorTrimmer, Karen
Black, Emma
Institution of OriginUniversity of Southern Queensland
Qualification NameDoctor of Philosophy
Number of Pages343
Year2019
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.26192/5f6973c2dccd4
Abstract

Primary production is integral to feeding and clothing the world, and cotton is both a food and a fibre. The cotton industry’s producer employers are critical to the longevity of the Australian cotton industry. Understanding their motivation and the influencers of their decision-making processes in crop choice is important. While exploring decision-making of employers is not new, this study seeks to establish what are the sources of motivation to grow cotton and what factors influence the decision-making processes in the context of cotton grower employer (CGE) crop choice.

The work is framed as exploratory and theory building, as little has been published in the academic literature about individual employer perspectives in agriculture, such as CGEs and how they are influenced from a psychological and behavioural economic perspective. There is a deficit specifically regarding individual employer experiences from this perspective in Australian agriculture broadly and in cotton growing more specifically.

Overall, this multi-disciplinary study has identified influencers that impact on the decision-making processes of CGEs. This research is important because it informs cotton industry stakeholders such as (a) growers and their supportive others, (b) industry service providers such as merchants, ginners, brokers and insurers, and (c) government policy-makers regarding the influences of CGE decision-making processes and crop choice.

Keywordsbehavioural economics, agriculture, psychology, decision-making, cotton grower employers
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020520402. Decision making
300403. Agronomy
380199. Applied economics not elsewhere classified
Byline AffiliationsSchool of Linguistics, Adult and Specialist Education
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https://research.usq.edu.au/item/q5419/crop-choices-motivational-and-decision-making-factors-that-attract-and-retain-cotton-grower-employers-within-the-australian-cotton-industry

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