Abstract
The purpose of this research is to explore the paradigms and worldviews of individuals involved in contemporary U.S. agriculture in the context of anthropological and sociological literature. This includes examining current paradigms constructions, most importantly "productivism" and "post-productivism" by scholars and applying those paradigms to current actors within U.S. agriculture. Pierre Bourdieu and George Herbert Mead, renowned for their theories of habitus and Symbolic Interactionism respectively, will be the primary theorists discussed in this study as their works specifically relate to with how individuals structures their world and how they make decisions from that structure. The data for this research was gathered through in-depth interviews with a variety of actors engaged in some facet of the agriculture industry and primarily reside in the mid-west region of the United States. Finally, this study will conclude with hypotheses as to why certain paradigms are more prevalent in contemporary U.S. agriculture.
Advisor
Mariola, Matthew
Department
Sociology and Anthropology
Recommended Citation
Butcher, Luke, "The Good Farmer, the Productive Farmer: Paradigms and Worldviews in Contemporary U.S. Agriculture" (2013). Senior Independent Study Theses. Paper 1144.
https://openworks.wooster.edu/independentstudy/1144
Disciplines
Rural Sociology
Keywords
farming, paradigms
Publication Date
2013
Degree Granted
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type
Senior Independent Study Thesis
© Copyright 2013 Luke Butcher