کوروش رضایی مقدم

Cooperatives have a very important and effective role in popular participation and community empowerment through the entrepreneurship strategy and sustainable businesses development in the rural development process. Doing this role requires attention to education and research in the management structure of this social organization with the presence of all the organs and members of rural cooperatives. From another aspect, Participatory action research is a scientific method for systematic definition and description of the real world problems and it helps to design and implementation of appropriate solutions in various fields significantly. The purpose of this research was to investigation of the philosophy, concept and characteristics of participatory action research and its role in the development of education and research related to the field of rural entrepreneur cooperatives. This is a review article and the library method and targeted literature review in related domestic and international essays and books have been used to gather information. According to results, Action research method unlike the other methods that research and action are two completely separate areas, address both subject in a cycle process simultaneously. Focusing on the issue, the emphasis on practical action and change, mutual cooperation, trust and attention to the common standards of the researcher and the demandant for change and evolution (cooperative members) and group participation makes up while finding ways to solve the problem and empowering the local community, the new knowledge and skills for entrepreneurship are created in the agricultural cooperatives. Therefore, in response to the fundamental question of the research, it can be said that because of the proximity and conceptual similarity between the cooperatives’ principles and the theoretical infrastructures of participatory action research, this paradigm is a suitable model for implementation in the management of rural entrepreneur cooperatives.

Identifying institutional actors and assessing their interactions are the necessary requirements for establishing a pluralistic extension and education system. This study assessed the interaction status of institutions performing extension and education programs in Kerman Province, using social network analysis. In first phase, 51 governmental, private, non-profit and profit institutes identified through archival research, direct observation and unstructured interviews with 163 experts and key informants related to agricultural extension and education programs; in the second phase to analyze the structure of relationship patterns among the institutional actors, social network analysis approach was applied to six interacted networks (technical experts, implementing participatory projects, scientific research and advising, technical supporting, financial supporting and political effects). The results showed that current dynamic institutional network of agricultural extension and education programs in Kerman Province is really poor in terms of organic interactions and communications among all actors. Hence, there is an unbalanced authority between governmental and non-governmental organizations in current institutional networks; so that private, non-profit and profit organizations have lower authority, influence and power of control in policy making process than public organizations, and then they are mainly neglected in policy making, management, decision making process of agricultural extension and education programs. Based on the results, it can be concluded that agricultural extension and education system in Kerman Province is “budget-oriented” rather than being “farmer-oriented”, “villager-oriented” or “user-oriented”.

The purpose of this study was to identify the students’ attitude toward components and barriers to establish the Entrepreneurship College at Shiraz University. The study carried out among undergraduate students of the College of Agriculture at Shiraz University. A multi-stage stratified random sampling was used to collect data from 191 students using questionnaire. The Face Validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by agricultural extension and education experts. The results showed that there were significant differences between the members and non-members of cooperative in components of an entrepreneurship college, so that cooperative members showed components integrated entrepreneurial activity, college social entrepreneurial environment, identify and create opportunities and entrepreneurial culture of college was more important to create Entrepreneur College. According to Borich model, identifying and creating opportunities for entrepreneurs was an important component in creating Entrepreneurship College. Science and technology parks and incubators were suggested to support the students and teachers in order to the improvement of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial activities. Providing counseling services centers in entrepreneurship education for students were suggested as well.

Application of modern irrigation and drainage canals for efficient use of water resources is necessary. Thus, identifying the factors influencing farmers ’ attitudes toward participation in irrigation and drainage projects (IDP) is essential. The purpose of this study is to identify factors affecting attitude toward participation in IDP in Syakh Darenjan, Fars Province, Iran. Stratified random sampling was used to collect data from 207 farmers as the research sample. The reliability and validity of the questionnaire were tested. The results of structural equations modeling from the total sample showed that farmers ' attitude toward participation was affected by social cohesion, perceived behavioral control, social norms and attitudes toward water resources management variables. The results also revealed that social cohesion variable in adopter group and perceived behavioral control variable in the non-adopter group had the most significant effect on the farmers ’ attitude toward participation in IDP.

Uneven land is one of the reasons of low irrigation efficiency in agricultural sector. Then, land leveling as one of the strategies of increasing the application of inputs, particularly water, is taken into account by experts and specialists and it has absorbed large amount of budget of Iran. The purpose of this research was to investigate economic and agronomic impacts of laser land leveling. The survey research was used to collect data in Fars Province. The sample consisted of 258 farmers which were selected using multi-stage random sampling. The results revealed that laser land leveling reduces the amount of consumption and cost of inputs such as water, fertilizer, pesticide, fuel and labor. Water use efficiency has been increased 52 percent by application of laser systems. Also this project increases wheat yield, gross income and land price and decrease time needed for land preparation, planting and harvesting. The amount of water, fertilizer and seed consumption decrease and yield increase over time. Finally, based on the results the improvement of farmers’ information about the impacts of project, change the attitude of farmers about water resources management and providing facilities for poor farmers have been suggested.

Starch is the most consumed food polysaccharide. In order to improve the functional properties of starch, its chemical structure is modified. The main objective of this research was to modify wheat and oat starches in order to improve their physicochemicalproperties and to determine the effects of the consequent changes on crystalline structure, interaction with water, and freeze thaw stability of the starches. Therefore, wheat and oat starches were hydroxypropylated using 30 mL propylen oxide at 40°C for 24 h. The results showed that the X-ray diffraction patterns of the modified starches showed no changes and water absorption, solubility and freeze-thaw stability of the modified starches increased, significantly. The hydroxypropylated wheat starch had higher water solubility and freeze thaw stability compared to the hydroxypropylated oat starch.

Although farmers’ psychological empower is a core prominent for development but classic development approaches emphasis on land, capital and human forces for development. However, the new development models are focusing on every single person development in a community. This approach is followed up under theme of empowerment which is developing by doing researches in different disciplines such as medicine, organizational management and women studies. But it is undermined in rural development studies. For this reason, a research was carried out to study it among members of the Rural Production Cooperatives in Fars Province as well as to explain its effecting factors because of role of cooperatives on member’s psychological empower. To do this research Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory was considered and the following variables were used: Competency: a self-believe on doing a job with full-skill and success with personal mastery and effort performance expectancy. Meaning: Having a good sense about own job as a value-job which leads to job satisfaction. Choice: An independent sense a person feels when she/he makes a decision to do a work as a part of her/his duties. Or she/he experiences freedom how to do it independently. Impact: A person is facing with a situation where she/he can change strategies of his work so that affects her/his colleagues according to her/his own understanding. Trust: It refers to relationship among people which depends on how a person considers her/himself as a competent, open and self-confident. Self- Esteem: It is a psychological characteristic which causes specific attitudes toward own abilities and capacities absolutely and/or relatively.