The Role and Functioning of Cultural Scripts in Farming and Agriculture

Abstract

We advocate an increased utilisation of script theory in rural social research and suggest this will enhance understandings of the social life of farmers and other rural residents. We define a script as a culturally shared expression, story or common line of argument, or an expected unfolding of events, that is deemed to be appropriate or expected in a particular socially defined context, and that provides a rationale or justification for a particular issue or course of action. We suggest there are four types of script: (1) a socially perceived routine or expected sequence of events; (2) a catch-phrase, metaphor or allegory that is frequently recited in response to a particular issue or situation; (3) a ministory, narrative or parable; and (4) a commonly used line of argument that is widely invoked in response to a particular issue or situation. Using examples from our work with farmers in the UK and Australia relating to animal health and biosecurity, and specifically bovine tuberculosis, we demonstrate how scripts affect the perceived management options of farmers in particular circumstances. We suggest that scripts have implications for policymakers and those seeking to promote practice change such as agricultural extension staff and agricultural veterinarians.

The intrinsic features of Environmental Management Systems that facilitate adoption and encourage innovation in primary industries

“…Thus, to implement an EMS would be an innovation for many business managers even though the internationally recognised EMS standard, ISO 14001, was ratified over 15 years ago. For some farmers, applying the concept of 'business manager' to themself would also be an innovation, as farmers frequently do not perceive themselves in this way (Vanclay, 2004a;Enticott and Vanclay, 2011;Vanclay and Enticott, 2011). Innovation in agriculture has evolved from single issue, technologically-focused approaches, through the use of a suite of related management issues or practices (for example, best management practices), to addressing the processes of management (including dealing with social factors such as staff management, peer relationships, and social norms).…”

Farmer autonomy and the farming self

“…Concerning nature (or a farm), though we have two e intertwined others e the generalized social other (GSO) and the generalized environmental other (GEO) (Weigert, 1991: 357). Farmers express their autonomy and farming self through cultural scripts of what it means to be a farmer (Vanclay and Enticott, 2011) and in contrast to the city or the office worker (see also Mendras, 1970: 172). They also develop this sense of an other within a particular frame e within the frame of their farm and within the sector of agriculture within certain contexts and relations.…”

Paperwork and the decoupling of audit and animal welfare: The challenges of materiality for better regulation

“…From this perspective technologies do not have fixed capacities; rather their material form, meaning and effectivity as heterogeneous assemblages are shaped through what Latour (1987) calls the 'trials of strength' between users and the behavioural 'scripts' built into them (Akrich, 1992). Unlike the symbolic interactionist approach to the 'cultural scripts' performed by farmers in responding to bovine TB (Vanclay and Enticott, 2011), this STS approach recognizes the power of objects themselves to object to the scripts projected upon them. It provides an alternative to neo-functionalist accounts of policy 'spill-over ' (Strøby Jensen, 2013;Zito, 1999) for explaining the capacity of audits and other regulatory instruments, like flood maps (Porter and Demeritt, 2012) or the British Cattle Tracing System (Singleton, 2012), to generate controversy and produce unintended consequences.…”