Using the farm tractor as a case study, I show that lags in technology diffusion arise along two distinct margins, which I term scale and scope. Though tractors are now used in nearly every agricultural field operation and in the production of nearly all crops, they first developed with much...

When there are competing technologies or products with unknown payoffs an important question is which technology will prevail and whether technologies with different payoffs can coexist in the long run. In this paper, we use a social learning model with local interactions to study this question....

I show that buyer power of firms could either increase or decrease their technology adoption, depending on the direction of technical change and on which input markets are imperfectly competitive. I examine this relationship empirically in a setting that features both concentrated labor markets...

Despite favourable ecological and economic results, many developing countries have not yet adopted an integrated pesticide management (IPM). Given rising marginal costs and diminishing marginal benefits from IPM technology transfer, an optimal control framework is used to identify optimal rates...

There is widespread consensus that agricultural technology has an important role to play for poverty reduction and sustainable development. There is less consensus, however, about the types of technologies that are best suited for smallholder farmers in Africa. While some consider natural...

We study the impacts of risk and ambiguity aversion on the adoption of new technologies, specifically genetically modified (GM) corn and soy seeds. We conduct experiments measuring risk and ambiguity aversion with Midwestern grain farmers. Risk aversion has little impact on the timing of...

In this paper, we examine the impact of soil conservation adoption on gender-specific resource allocations within households in Zambia. The extension of funding of conservation farming (CF) training sessions in 2007 in specific districts in Zambia provides variation in CF takeup. We use this...

Smart weeding technologies (SWT) enable substantial herbicide savings via precise sensor-based application. This can enhance agrobiodiversity and make modern agriculture more sustainable. Currently, our knowledge about what will determine SWT adoption at the farm level is limited because few...

In this study, I delve into the factors shaping the adoption of new farming practices among Indian farmers, with a particular focus on the role of information access and its diverse sources. Leveraging nationally representative data on rural households from the National Sample Survey Office,...

A major challenge for countries dealing with conflict and instability is encouraging the use of farming technologies and natural resource management practices that are climate-smart. These practices boost productivity, build resilience to climate challenges and thus contribute to other...