Communication in Agricultural Extension and Rural Development : An Exploratory Qualitative Study in Uppland

Sammanfattning

Agricultural advisory communication plays an important role in knowledge exchange between policy, research, and agricultural practice, particularly in relation to sustainability transitions and rural development. This study examines how communication between farmers and agricultural advisors is experienced in practice, with particular attention to how hierarchical and dialogical dynamics coexist and are negotiated. The study is based on a qualitative exploratory design in Uppland, Sweden, using semi-structured interviews with farmers and actors involved in agricultural advisory contexts, complemented by a policy document used to contextualise the advisory framework. The analysis draws on theories of dialogical communication, participation and power, advisory dialogue, and communication as social learning. The findings suggest that advisory communication cannot be understood through a single communicative logic. While advisors often describe communication as flexible and collaborative, farmers’ experiences reveal how standardisation, institutional structures, and externally defined priorities may shape advisory interactions. The study concludes that the perceived relevance and legitimacy of advisory communication depend not only on the content of advice, but also on whether communication is experienced as responsive to farmers’ situated knowledge, practical realities, and decisionmaking contexts.