While the role of technical change in agriculture is seen differently by protagonists of different theories of development, the processes of technology generation and uptake are widely seen as progressive. In this vein, agricultural technology assessment is seen as contributing to research...

In a recent reappraisal of evidence adduced for allocative efficiency in traditional agriculture, Dillon and Anderson employed a method based on a combination of traditional economic aspects and statistical aspects of estimated production functions. However, their reappraisal involved using...

Using the results of an empirical study of farmers' utility functions, evidence is presented that risk plays a measurable role in farmer decision making. The extension implications of such risk influences are discussed with particular emphasis on the possible efficacy of using group utility...

The present article relates to pastoral firms in a drought-prone environment. For such firms, it explores the economic relationship between stocking rates, drought possibilities and fodder reserves. (1) The analysis shows that an optimal stocking rate can be ascertained for any given pattern of...

Game theory - aptly described as the scientific approach to poker, business, women and war - has proved to be no cure-all for the conflict situations studied by agricultural economists. Like Marshall, it has had its day. Still, just as in general economics, game theory has provided an...

The consequences of carryover for the optimal application of fertilizer are considered using dynamic programming. The conclusions are relevant for the further problem of deciding how many grain crops to harvest from grain sorghum plants grown in a tropical environment. Dynamic programming is...