Social Network Analysis, a new approach to Explain Pluralistic Extension and Education System: The case of Kerman Province

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”.