Farmers, the practice of farming and the future of agroforestry: an application of Bourdieu's concepts of field and habitus

摘要

Agroforestry, the practice of raising crops and trees together in ways that are mutually beneficial, provides farmers with an alternative to more conventional farming practices. In this paper, we apply Bourdieu's concepts of "field" and "habitus" inan attempt to better understand the practice of farming and the role that agroforestry may have in farming systems. Analysis is based on qualitative and quantitative interviews of farmers and other key informants in two regions, Fox-Wyaconda Watershed in northeast Missouri and Scott County in southeast Missouri, USA. Qualitative data are obtained from 53 informants from November 1998-January 1999 and the survey data obtained from 364 farm operators between February and April 1999. Within the field of farming, farmers emphasized the importance of economic, family and rental relations. Important habitus considerations include different interpretations of what constitutes farming and what constitutes forestry. Based on Bourdieu's theoretical framework, we offer three alternative paths of social change that may lead to more widespread utilization of agroforestry.