Towards a Better Conceptual Framework for Innovation Processes in Agriculture and Rural Development: From Linear Models to Systemic Approaches
Summary. This paper argues that agricultural innovation requires moving beyond linear, technical models to systemic approaches that recognize farming's multifunctional role. The authors identify gaps between societal demands for change and farmers' capacity to innovate, showing that technical and economic factors alone cannot explain innovation processes. They propose that successful innovation emerges from collaborative networks where social and institutional factors, farmer knowledge, motivations, and values drive change. Extension services and institutions often become barriers when they fail to recognize shifted farmer and societal needs.
Cite this article
Knickel, K., Brunori, G., Rand, S., & Proost, J.. (2009). Towards a Better Conceptual Framework for Innovation Processes in Agriculture and Rural Development: From Linear Models to Systemic Approaches. The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension. https://doi.org/10.1080/13892240902909064
Knickel, Karlheinz, et al. “Towards a Better Conceptual Framework for Innovation Processes in Agriculture and Rural Development: From Linear Models to Systemic Approaches.” The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1080/13892240902909064.
Knickel, Karlheinz, Gianluca Brunori, Sigrid Rand, and Jet Proost. 2009. “Towards a Better Conceptual Framework for Innovation Processes in Agriculture and Rural Development: From Linear Models to Systemic Approaches.” The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension. https://doi.org/10.1080/13892240902909064.
@article{knickel-2009-towards-better-conceptual-framework-innovation,
title = {Towards a Better Conceptual Framework for Innovation Processes in Agriculture and Rural Development: From Linear Models to Systemic Approaches},
author = {Karlheinz Knickel and Gianluca Brunori and Sigrid Rand and Jet Proost},
journal = {The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension},
year = {2009},
doi = {10.1080/13892240902909064},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1080/13892240902909064}
}
TY - JOUR TI - Towards a Better Conceptual Framework for Innovation Processes in Agriculture and Rural Development: From Linear Models to Systemic Approaches AU - Karlheinz Knickel AU - Gianluca Brunori AU - Sigrid Rand AU - Jet Proost JO - The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension PY - 2009 DO - 10.1080/13892240902909064 UR - https://doi.org/10.1080/13892240902909064 ER -
Details
- DOI
- 10.1080/13892240902909064
- Countries
- Austria, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, United Kingdom
- Regions
- Europe
- Categories
- innovation-theory, regional-innovation-systems, agtech
- Added
- 2026-04-28