The report proposes a conceptual framework for researching key issues relating to rural public facility policy affecting such services as fire protection, water systems, roads, wastewater treatment, hospitals, and others, and identifies important research needs in this area. Major components of the framework are sources of financing (private and…

Whether large-scale or small farms dominate, a county's farm structure is influenced not only by changes within farming but also by key factors such as nonfarm economic activity, geography, and population growth. Large-farm counties where agriculture dominates the economy are concentrated in the Plains, Midwest, and Mississippi Delta. Small-farm…

Proposes new model for study of microcomputer technology in agriculture in which diffusion/adoption of innovations is conceptualized as a structural process affected by "access conditions" resulting from research and development, intrinsic technology characteristics, and distributional characteristics. Examines thesis that potential adopters…

Support for public education wavers in a number of states due to a lack of evidence indicating that increased funding is associated with increases in output. Maintaining and increasing this support, however, is critical for rural communities as they seek to strengthen their human capital base as a strategy for economic growth and development. The…

A major issue in Information Systems (IS) research is how to combine relevance and rigor (Benbasat & Zmud, 1999) and reduce the widening gap between research results and adoption (Dunn, 1994). Qualitative researchers make use of interpretivist methods to add richness and depth to their understanding of user problems. Interpretivist methods…

The first effort to estimate the impact of Community Resource Development (CRD) programs of the late 1950's and 1960's on the quality of life in Arkansas counties had confusing results. Researchers developed an estimation model to measure the impact of CRD activity on the 1960-1970 and 1960-1980 change in quality of life and used data from CRD…

Consequences of population turnaround for rural economic development are examined in a 9-county region of Northern Lower Michigan. Data from census reports and 374 usable responses to a questionnaire mailed to a random sample of property owners drawn from 1982 county tax assessment rolls were used to test competing hypotheses about rural…

The book is the final report of an effort to estimate the impact of Community Resource Development (CRD) programs of the late 1950's and 1960's on the quality of life in Arkansas counties. It details an estimation model developed by researchers using specially designed statistical procedures. The report also describes the data taken from CRD…