Farmers, the practice of farming and the future of agroforestry: an application of Bourdieu's concepts of field and habitus

• Published in: Rural sociology Vol. 68; no. 1; pp. 64 - 86
• Main Authors: Raedeke, A.H, Green, J.J, Hodge, S.S, Valdivia, C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.03.2003; Rural Sociological Society
• Subjects: Adoption; Adoption of Innovations; Agrarian structures; Agricultural Occupations; Agricultural practices; Agricultural Production; Agriculture; Agroforestry; Animals; Appropriate Technology; Bourdieu, Pierre (1930-2002); Conservation (Environment); Counties; Environmentalism; Farmers; Farming; Forestry; Fox-Wyaconda Watershed, Missouri; Habitus; Innovations; interviews; Land Use; Missouri; Qualitative analysis; Qualitative Research; quantitative analysis; Respondents; Rural and urban sociology; Rural sociology; Rural studies; Scott County, Missouri; Social Change; Social interactions; Sociology; statistical analysis; Technology Transfer; Training; Trees; USA; Missouri; United States Of America; New York; Scotland; United Kingdom > UK; United States > US; Multivariate Analysis; Field; Rural Sociology; Bourdieu (P.); Theory; Occupational Practice; Social Image; Agriculture; Farmer; Statistics; Habitus
• ISSN: 0036-0112; 1549-0831
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1549-0831.2003.tb00129.x

Agroforestry, the practice of raising crops and trees together in ways that are mutually beneficial, provides farmers with an alternative to more conventional farming practices. In this paper, we apply Bourdieu's concepts of “field” and “habitus” in an attempt to better understand the practice of farming and the role that agroforestry may have in farming systems. Analysis is based on qualitative and quantitative interviews of farmers and other key informants in two regions, Fox‐Wyaconda Watershed in northeast Missouri and Scott County in southeast Missouri. Within the field of farming, farmers emphasized the importance of economic, family and rental relations. Important habitus considerations include different interpretations of what constitutes farming and what constitutes forestry. Based on Bourdieu's theoretical framework, we offer three alternative paths of social change that may lead to more widespread utilization of agroforestry.