Participatory development of mobile agricultural advisory driven by behavioural determinants of adoption

Mobile applications have the potential to revolutionise agricultural advisories, providing farmers with real-time information and insights for improved decision-making. However, the adoption of such apps is influenced by various behavioural factors, necessitating a participatory approach of development with the stakeholders. This study proposes a framework that begins with a prototype app informed by a literature review and the identification of behavioral determinants of app adoption. Iterative participatory feedback, grounded in these determinants, is employed to refine the app. The framework is demonstrated through the case study of Makara, an app providing risk advisories for farm yield, income, and risk mitigating practices in Maharashtra, India. A user-focused Theory of Change (ToC) was used to design a survey to identify socio-economic and behavioral drivers of agricultural app adoption. Data collected from 1354 farmers across four districts of Maharashtra during April–May 2023 informed a linear regression model that identified significant explanatory factors. Building on these findings, multiple feedback sessions with farmers were conducted over a year to iteratively co-develop the app's features. Key behavioral determinants, including norms, trust, abilities, and attitudes towards adopting mobile-based agricultural advisories, significantly influenced adoption. The participatory design process addressed these factors, incorporating features such as multi-lingual support, intercropping and multi-cropping options, and multi-component budgeting to enhance trust and perceived ease in using the app. User-friendliness was further improved through redundant communication of risks, combining textual and audio-visual formats. This paper presents a mixed-methods approach to integrating behavioral drivers of agricultural (advisory app) technology adoption into a participatory co-design framework (of such an app), enabling considerations for inclusivity and scaling in the design process of the app itself.