Farm parents' decisions about children's farm tasks

Steven Neufeld, Center for Farm Health and Safety, Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA

Despite increasing concern over childhood agricultural injuries, research on parental decision-making processes regarding their children’s farm work continues to be limited. This presentation discusses various factors underlying farm parents’ beliefs about age-appropriate children’s farm work and their decisions regarding their children’s involvement in farm work. Using data from a recent national survey of farm parents (n=411), it analyzes the effects of the criteria used for judging children’s readiness, safety behavior, attitudes towards safety experts, farm experience, and beliefs about the importance of children’s farm work. Results show that parental beliefs about age appropriate farm tasks are generally earlier than recommendations in the North American Guidelines for Children’s Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT), but that the difference varies considerably by task. Multiple regression analyses indicate that the factors predicting age-appropriate beliefs vary considerably for men and women, and that they vary somewhat less for decisions about the age at which children start helping and start using machinery. Beliefs about the importance of children helping are especially important for men. Overall, the results suggest that age-appropriateness is a multi-faceted construct influenced by normative considerations, attitudes towards experts, and farm experience, as well as the process for judging children’s abilities. Decisions about children’s farm work are also influenced by a variety of factors besides beliefs about age-appropriateness. The implications for research on parental decision-making about children’s farm work are discussed.

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