Human capital, wealth, property rights, and the adoption of new farm technologies: The Tawahka Indians of Honduras

Interest in vanishing rain forests has led scholars to say that the adoptio n of new farm technologies such as improved plant varieties could increase yields, thus reducing deforestation. Results of past studies show that huma n capital (e.g., schooling, literacy), wealth, and security of land tenure help farmers adopt new farm technologies. These studies have focused on vil lages with tight links to the market and little land. Do results apply to m ore self-sufficient economies with ample land? Analysis of 101 households o f Tawahka Indians in Honduras's rain forest suggests that education and kno wledge of Spanish enhance adoption by facilitating the flow of information into the household and by making it easier for people to judge the quality of the technology. Wealth bore the expected positive correlation to adoptio n, but security of land tenure played a dual role: it encouraged the adopti on of one technology (improved rice seeds) but it discouraged the adoption of the other technology (chemical herbicides). Policies to increase bilingu al education may encourage adoption and benefit indigenous people and conse rvation.