Toward the concurrent self-evaluation of solidarity in platform-based development: a case study of discrepancies among technological interpretation in Japan

Abstract

AbstractModern global agriculture requires an innovative trade-off and balance between crop productivity and environmental sustainability. Determining this balance requires the participatory development of farmers, although this often fails due to discrepancies. In our view, successful participatory development is based on concurrent self-evaluations that enable stakeholders to recognize discrepancies and to fairly and constructively build solidarity. This paper is aimed at identifying discrepancies in the interpretation of technologies using a case study of a multistakeholder platform used for biological soil diagnosis in Hamamatsu city, Japan. A combination of a narrative approach and the application of co-occurrence networks is taken based on the qualitative data for farmers, research experts, research institutions, and governmental agents. The analyses revealed that highly and less engaged farmers, researchers, and local governments have different interpretations of technological perfection, technological uncertainty, and technological perception. These interpretations are associated with engagement. In summary, the cognitive differences among the stakeholders of participatory projects can be objectively assessed in the form of concurrent self-evaluations using the mixed research method proposed in this paper.