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I share because I care! Smallholder farmers’ perceptions of the usefulness of word of mouth for their market participation decisions

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dc.contributor.author Ismail, Ismail J.
dc.contributor.author Amani, David
dc.contributor.author Changalima, Ismail A.
dc.contributor.author Kazungu, Isaac
dc.date.accessioned 2024-03-06T05:33:55Z
dc.date.available 2024-03-06T05:33:55Z
dc.date.issued 2023
dc.identifier.uri http://repository.mocu.ac.tz/xmlui/handle/123456789/1260
dc.description.abstract Purpose – The approach to integrate concepts from different disciplines so as to solve the problems facing smallholder farmers has gained momentum in recent years. However, very little is known about how word-ofmouth (WOM) dimensions can be used in agricultural marketing to explain market participation among smallholder farmers. Therefore, this study investigates the perceived usefulness of WOM in explaining smallholder farmers’ market participation. Design/methodology/approach – The cross-sectional design was carried out to survey a sample of 467 smallholder farmers. This study used partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS 4 to test hypotheses. Findings – The results revealed that WOM dimensions such as expertise differential, strong tie and trustworthiness among smallholder farmers significantly influence the WOM message delivery. Likewise, the findings suggest that WOM message delivery significantly influences market participation among smallholder farmers. Finally, it was revealed that WOM message delivery significantly mediates the relationship between WOM dimensions and market participation. Practical implications – This study provides useful insights to smallholder farmers on how to use WOM dimensions to enhance more market participation in formal markets, especially through proper WOM message delivery. Originality/value – The current study solves the problem of information asymmetry among smallholder farmers through WOM. It is perhaps the first study to establish the link between WOM dimensions and market participation among smallholder farmers in the context of developing countries. Keywords WOM dimensions, Expertise differential, Strong tie, Trustworthiness, WOM Paper type Research paper en_US
dc.language.iso en en_US
dc.publisher Emerald Publishing Limited en_US
dc.subject WOM-dimensions en_US
dc.subject Expertise-differential en_US
dc.subject Strong-tie en_US
dc.subject Trustworthiness en_US
dc.subject WOM en_US
dc.title I share because I care! Smallholder farmers’ perceptions of the usefulness of word of mouth for their market participation decisions en_US
dc.title.alternative WOM for market participation decisions en_US
dc.type Article en_US


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