Our philosophy and aims

The Department of Communication and Advisory Services in Rural Areas at the Institute for Social Sciences in Agriculture focuses on the study and the enhancement of social processes in rural areas, taking account of local and regional issues and challenges relating to agricultural land use and rural development. We see our approach as engaged social sciences in which people matter. The overall aims of our research and teaching activities are 

• to promote awareness of the diversity and challenges of rural ways of life,
• to provide methodological support to stakeholders in agriculture and rural areas as they look for ways of solving problems, and
• to promote the understanding and management of innovation processes that increase the sustainability of land uses and lifestyles.

The theoretical and conceptual bases of our work stem from advisory systems’ and innovation research that builds on theories of knowledge systems and problem solving processes, intervention methods and voluntary behaviour change, group and team dynamics and organisational development taken from the fields of agricultural, rural and organisational sociology, human geography and social psychology. The practical methods we use are based on humanistic and transpersonal psychology concepts for human beings.