Managerial factors in primary production: data from a sample of New Zealand farmers with an emphasis on experience as a factor in success

Abstract

This report presents the data collected from a postal survey of a wide ranging sample of all types of New Zealand farmers. The survey schedule was designed to collect information enabling models to be developed explaining the variables giving rise to a farmer’s managerial ability, and to determine and explore farmers’ Locus of Control and its relationship to a farmer’s managerial ability. The detailed results of these studies have been published elsewhere (see the reference list), but these research articles do not present the full details of the data collected. This report was prepared to ensure these details are available for researchers who choose to further explore these and other issues. The survey was conducted in late 2006 and achieved a very satisfactory 41 per cent response rate from the stratified sample of 2300 farmers. The data collected included both farm and, especially, farmer data covering both personal information (age, education and the like) and farm management and skill information. Question sets to discover the farmer’s management style (personality), locus of control, objectives, self rated intelligence, managerial ability, cash surplus, asset value changes, physical output, experience both as a young person, and as a farmer, and information on a farmer’s forebears were all included. The data was analysed in various ways including producing distributions by farm type and other categories. Factor analyses were also carried out to isolate some of the basic factors explaining farmers’ personal features (objectives, managerial style….). The results, and the important conclusions, are all presented. Various regression equations were explored in explaining managerial ability. It was clear that experience was an important contributor to ability, particularly a farmer’s early life experiences. Aspects of a farmer’s managerial style (personality) also proved to be important as well as aspects of the farmer’s objectives. These results are important for directing efforts to improve the general level of ability in the nation’s farm managers. Improvement of, say, 5 per cent would have a marked impact on the efficiency of resource use and the nation’s wealth.