PhD defense: Problem solving in dairy farming

On Thursday 20 June 2013 Bjørn Gunnar Hansen will hold a trial lecture on a prescribed topic, and defend his thesis for the PhD degree at NHH.

17.06.2013 - Ed.

The empirical study is motivated by the fact that farmers with similar points of departure on their farms achieve very different results. Thus, the differences seem to be related to the farmers themselves. The topic of the thesis is how dairy farmers solve problems, and it builds on interviews with 90 Norwegian dairy farmers combined with data on milk production and farm economics.

The study reveals that human capital, social capital, motivation, attribution patterns and proactive behaviour have a decisive influence on problem solving and farming results. Controllable attributions, mixed attribution patterns and proactive problem solving contribute positively to farming performance.

Prescribed topic for the trial lecture:
Problem solving techniques for high performance teams

Time of the trial lecture:
11:15 in Karl Borch's Auditorium, NHH

Title of the thesis:
Problem solving in dairy farming

Time and place for the defense:
13:15 in Karl Borch's Auditorium, NHH

Members of the evaluation committee:
Professor Marcus Selart, NHH (leader)
Professor Mario Benassi, University of Milan
Associate Professor Helena Hansson, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

Supervisor
Professor Arent Greve, NHH