Assignment:
Students will formulate a research question on the house selling price in one of Canadian cities, survey the relevant literature, obtain appropriate data, analyze the data, and present conclusions in written form in one page.
See the example below;
Determinants of Adoption of Improved Crossbred Cattles: A Case Study of Suba and Laikipia Districts, Kenya
Your Name Here
Introduction
It is widely recognized that technological advancement is one of the vital components for increasing livestock production and productivity. Adoption of improved agricultural technologies and practices result in multiple benefits to the adopters including enhanced food security, improved income, and reduced poverty (Barrett, Carter and Timmer, 2010). In Kenya, the extension service has made significant effort to disseminate improved livestock technologies over the last several decades. Obviously, the benefits of the technology will be realized provided that the intended users adopt the available technologies. A timely assessment to see whether the technologies are embraced and utilized by farmers is important to identify constraints, learn from experience and inform future technology generation and dissemination. The purpose of this study is, therefore, to identify the factors that influence farmers adoption and use of improved crossbred cattle in Kenya.
Objective
The objective of this study is to identify the main determinants associated with farmers' improved livestock technology adoption in Kenya.
Research Questions
Ø What are the factors influencing farmers' crossbred cattle adoption decision?
Ø Is there any difference between adopters and non-adopters with regard to assets and resource endowments?
Hypotheses
· It is hypothesized that education level of the head of the household, access to the market and labour availability are hypothesized to be positively associated with decision to adopt improved livestock technologies.
· It is expected that adopters of improved technologies to possess more assets and resources compared to non-adopters.
Data
To answer the research questions we will use a publicly available (www.ifpri.org) dataset called "Land Tenure, Agricultural Productivity and the Environment, 2001". The survey was conducted in two districts (Suba and Laikipia) in Kenya using 310 randomly selected farm households.
Methods
We employ descriptive statistical analysis to test the first hypothesis. Specifically we use t-test to see if there is any difference in terms of asset and resources between adopters and non-adopters. To test the second hypothesis we utilize binary logistic regressions analysis. Households that have at least one improved crossbreed cattle in their farm are classified as adopters and the others considered as non-adopters. This will serve as a dependent variable and we regress it on a number of variables that are hypothesized to be associated with it.
References
Barrett, C.B., Carter M.R., and Timmer, C.P. (2010) A Century-Long Perspective on Agricultural Development. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol. 92, pp. 447-468.
Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO). Livestock Development.
Nairobi, Kenya. Available at: https://www.kalro.org/
FAO (2005) Kenya: Livestock Sector Analysis Brief. Rome
World Bank (2005) World Development Indicators. The World Bank Group. Washington, DC.
Paul Omondi Obunde; Cyrus M. Mbogo; Willis Oluoch Kosura; Agnes Wanza Kamoni, 2012, "Kenya, Land Tenure, Agricultural Productivity and the Environment: Suba and Laikipia Districts, 2001", https://hdl.handle.net/1902.1/17357, Harvard Dataverse, V4