Means-end chains

This tool is used to understand farmers’ motivations to prefer particular varieties, seeds or seed sources.

Means-end-chains (MEC) is an approach originating in the field of consumer studies. Its attractiveness is the freedom it gives to respondents to select and verbalize their own constructs used to evaluate a product or service. The Means-end-chains interviews consist of two parts: 1) attribute elicitation and 2) laddering. The elicitation technique consists of a “triadic sorting” based on Kelly’s repertory grid. In this technique, typically the farmer or trader is presented with triplets of three fairly similar products or services which he or she has to sort according to his/her perceived similarities and differences (Kelly, 1955). These personally relevant constructs are subsequently linked to their personal goals via laddering interviews.

Laddering interviews the interviewer is not allowed to ask anything else but “which one do you prefer” and “why is this important to you?” By presenting the farmers or traders with the actual planting materials, the farmers may come up with characteristics or motivations that researchers could not have imagined as important. A MEC study requires approximately 40 interviews, or less when farmers’ answers are very similar. Some training is needed, especially in the recording and analysis of the data.

Tool description: Here

User guide: Here

Examples:

• Urrea-Hernandez, C., C.J.M. Almekinders, and Y.K. van Dam. 2016. “Understanding Perceptions of Potato Seed Quality among Small-Scale Farmers in Peruvian Highlands.” NJAS - Wageningen Journal of Life Sciences 76 (March):21–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.njas.2015.11.001.

Contact: Fleurkilwinger23@gmail.com, Ynte.vandam@wur.nl