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001 68866
003 MX-TxCIM
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008 250603s2025 xxk||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
022 _a0308-521X
022 _a1873-2267 (Online)
024 8 _ahttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2025.104399
040 _aMX-TxCIM
041 _aeng
100 1 _aFreed, S.
_939007
245 1 0 _aAgency and behavior change in agricultural research for development :
_bnew directions for guiding agri-food system transformations
260 _aUnited Kingdom :
_bElsevier Ltd,
_c2025.
500 _aOpen Access
500 _aPeer review
520 _aCONTEXT: Agri-food system transformations require change across sectors and actors within the system. Initiatives contributing to these changes need to connect system change processes to individual and collective agency and behaviors. OBJECTIVE: We propose a conceptual framework on agency and behavior change for transforming agri-food systems (ACT framework). ACT emphasizes agri-food system actors' behaviors with attention to their power, agency, and the influence of structural agri-food system elements. Researchers can apply ACT to assess an initiative's contributions to changes in system elements through individual and collective behaviors. METHODS: We conducted literature reviews and key informant interviews for 29 initiative case studies. Using ACT, we identified patterns in terms of initiatives' targeted actors, behaviors, and the factors shaping actors' agency and behavior. We then applied ACT in an initiative in Zimbabwe to develop a theory of change that links behavior change pathways with broader systems transformation. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The reviewed initiatives focused heavily on shaping producers' behavior through knowledge transfer, less often considering other actors and structural challenges and opportunities. Key informants frequently reported enablers and impediments to achieve initiative outcomes that were associated with structural system elements. Few were able to articulate their initiative's theory of change and underlying assumptions. SIGNIFICANCE: ACT can support a more diverse and theory-based exploration of agri-food system initiatives' target actors, behaviors, and factors shaping behaviors. Development professionals can apply the ACT framework to design more effective TOCs that attend to diverse actor groups and leverage the factors influencing these actors' agency and behaviors.
546 _aText in English
597 _bAgroecology
_dCGIAR Trust Fund
_uhttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/174845
_fMultifunctional Landscapes
_aGender equality, youth & social inclusion
_aEnvironmental health & biodiversity
_cSystems Transformation
_cResilient Agrifood Systems
650 7 _aFrameworks
_2AGROVOC
_927939
650 7 _aTheory of change
_2AGROVOC
_931793
650 7 _aAgroecology
_2AGROVOC
_93995
700 1 _8001712573
_aVoss, R.C.
_gFormerly Socioeconomics Program
_gFormerly Sustainable Agrifood Systems
_gFormerly Global Maize Program
_921703
700 1 _aFalk, T.
_939009
700 1 _aRietveld, A.
_97992
700 1 _aAlary, V.
_914635
700 1 _aChimonyo, V.G.P.
_8001712688
_gSustainable Agrifood Systems
_919177
700 1 _aFrija, A.
_98304
700 1 _aGuettou-Djurfeldt, N.
_939010
700 1 _aLestrelin, G.
_939011
700 1 _aSingh, S.
_939012
700 1 _aNdiwa, A.M.
_939013
700 1 _aZingwena, T.
_932518
773 0 _tAgricultural Systems
_gv. 228, art. 104399
_dUnited Kingdom : Elsevier Ltd, 2025.
_x0308-521X
_wG444466
856 4 _yOpen Access through DSpace
_uhttps://hdl.handle.net/10883/35710
942 _cJA
_n0
_2ddc
999 _c68866
_d68858