Peasants’ Confusion in the Process of Technology Socialization: The Agro-economic and Sociocultural Analysis

In agrarian economy country like India, it is very important to have regular interaction between peas ants and researchers for the technological development and its effective application. As a effect of modernization, farmers are more responsive and active recipient of technology, hence utmost care must be taken to observe their cognitive behavior viz conflict, confusion, discontinuance, dissonance, reinvention and disagreement. Peasants need to enhance their investment in the hope of doubling production, which are not only difficult but also denting task both for peasants as well as researchers and policy makers despite subsidies and soft or even interest free loan. The present empirical research has focused on peasant confusion while participating in the process of technology socialization in the locale of study, Ghoragachha, a village where farmers have become accustomed with taking risk with innovation. It has been found that predictor viz. occupation (x@ fuel consumption (x₁₅), innovation proneness (x₂₀), risk orientation (x₂₁) and information seeking behavior (x₂₉) are positively and significantly correlated with the predicted variable confusion index (y) at 0.05 level of significance. In a stepwise regression analysis, occupation (x₉) and information seeking behavior (x₂₉) have been retained at the last step of regression of confusion index (y). It has also found that information seeking behavior (x₂₉) produced highest total direct effect and utilization of cosmopolite source of information (x₂₉) produced highest total indirect effect in path analysis of predicted variable confusion (y) with 32 predictors. Henceforth, research design for technology to be socialized by the multifaceted and highly informed peasant necessarily be developed while considering the cognitive behavior of participating peasant.