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Motivational Interviewing as a Tool to Address Farm Stress and Difficult Conversations

Early Career Development

Katie Wantoch
Farm Management Professor of Practice
UW-Madison Division of Extension
Menomonie

Abstract

Family farms comprise 96% of U.S. farms (U.S., 2017). The demanding nature of work makes farming a stressful occupation. Extension educators are working to organize resources to address the growing farm stress needs of farmers and their families. Educators serve a critical role in their local communities, though many educators may enter their career without a complete skill set (Myers, 2011). Educators are more proficient in their subject matter expertise, but may be less competent in other skills, like oral and written communication skills. Motivational Interviewing (MI) is ‘a collaborative conversation style for strengthening a person’s own motivation and commitment to change’ (Miller & Rollnick, 2013). UW Extension educators developed an MI-based professional development program to improve the adoption of a goal-oriented communication technique that would assist educators when engaging with farmers and farm families on farm stress. The four-part training consisted of theoretical introductions of MI, experiential exercises of different MI skills, group discussion, and case examples, highlighting the four key concepts of MI and related MI skill. Initial results suggested educators gained a significant amount of knowledge and reported feeling more comfortable using the MI skill in their work. Participants found the training to be valuable, an average of 4.08 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being very valuable. The goal of this program was to encourage educators to spend more time listening and engaging in techniques that would allow an opportunity for the farmer or farm family member to vocalize their farm stressors and identify reasons to change, rather than being told how and why they should change. This presentation will focus on the MI skills that can assist educators in meeting the needs of farmers and farm families they work with, and inspire positive behavior changes when engaging in meaningful conversations on critical and time-sensitive topics, such as farm stress, farm succession, and other difficult conversations.

Authors: Katie Wantoch
  1. Katie Wantoch Associate Professor, Agriculture Agent, UW-Madison Division of Extension, Wisconsin, 54751