{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/140929"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/140929","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Exploring Participation in Citizen Science for Leadership Identity Development and Food Systems Leadership: A Case Study of Tricot","abstract":"Although participation in citizen science (CS) projects is a viable avenue for encouraging grassroots leadership in agricultural settings, there has been limited research on the impact of CS on the formation of leadership identities and leadership behaviors in food systems. Therefore, this phenomenological case study explored the personal and social experiences of participating in the CS initiative Triadic Comparison of Technologies (tricot) and the implications for the development of leadership identity and food systems leadership among Nigerian farmers. Guided by Leadership Identity Construction Theory (LICT) and Social Identity Theory (SIT), the study explored how tricot participants claimed and were granted a leadership identity, subsequently exercising that identity to develop local food systems. Data were collected from 68 participants across four stakeholder groups: 15 tricot farmers (in-depth interviews), 25 colleagues of tricot farmers (focus group discussions), 22 community and farmers' group leaders (focus group discussions), and 6 International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) implementing staff (focus group discussions). Using hermeneutic phenomenology and thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke's (2006) approach, the study revealed that tricot participation facilitated leadership identity development through worthiness derived from enhanced occupational competencies and affiliation with legitimate institutions, resulting in leader identity. Farmers claimed leadership identities by recognizing themselves as onímọ̀ (knowledgeable persons) on agricultural matters, while communities granted leadership recognition by ascribing the status of ẹniyàn pàtàkì (important person), offering positional responsibilities, and consistently seeking farmers' advisory services. Implementing institutions' legitimacy facilitated the development of Osun state tricot participants' leadership identities, while community engagement strategies supported it. Additionally, tricot's design for knowledge co-creation, its presence in the community, and its multi-season engagement solidified the leadership identity construction process. Further, the findings revealed that Osun state tricot farmers exercised food systems leadership by: (1) strengthening seed systems via influence; (2) advancing value added products through innovation and teaching (3) building farmers capacity through knowledge sharing; and (4) serving as advocate and bridge between IITA researchers, community leaders, and farming communities through communicating research needs and community needs, and communicating farmer feedback to researchers. Additionally, the study identified several constraints to leadership development, including unmet expectations, gender-related barriers, and farmer-herder conflict. Theoretically, the study extended LICT and SIT to food systems and CS contexts, demonstrating how relational dynamics of identity claiming and granting operate within participatory agricultural development. Empirically, the study contributed to the food systems discourse by highlighting citizen scientists as community leaders in food systems development, while revealing how structural factors, such as cultural context, gender norms, and program design, shape the emergence and strength of leadership identity and food systems leadership. In practice, the findings have significant implications for the design of CS programs that intentionally cultivate leadership.","abstract_html":"Although participation in citizen science (CS) projects is a viable avenue for encouraging grassroots leadership in agricultural settings, there has been limited research on the impact of CS on the formation of leadership identities and leadership behaviors in food systems. Therefore, this phenomenological case study explored the personal and social experiences of participating in the CS initiative Triadic Comparison of Technologies (tricot) and the implications for the development of leadership identity and food systems leadership among Nigerian farmers. Guided by Leadership Identity Construction Theory (LICT) and Social Identity Theory (SIT), the study explored how tricot participants claimed and were granted a leadership identity, subsequently exercising that identity to develop local food systems. Data were collected from 68 participants across four stakeholder groups: 15 tricot farmers (in-depth interviews), 25 colleagues of tricot farmers (focus group discussions), 22 community and farmers' group leaders (focus group discussions), and 6 International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) implementing staff (focus group discussions). Using hermeneutic phenomenology and thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke's (2006) approach, the study revealed that tricot participation facilitated leadership identity development through worthiness derived from enhanced occupational competencies and affiliation with legitimate institutions, resulting in leader identity. Farmers claimed leadership identities by recognizing themselves as onímọ̀ (knowledgeable persons) on agricultural matters, while communities granted leadership recognition by ascribing the status of ẹniyàn pàtàkì (important person), offering positional responsibilities, and consistently seeking farmers' advisory services. Implementing institutions' legitimacy facilitated the development of Osun state tricot participants' leadership identities, while community engagement strategies supported it. Additionally, tricot's design for knowledge co-creation, its presence in the community, and its multi-season engagement solidified the leadership identity construction process. Further, the findings revealed that Osun state tricot farmers exercised food systems leadership by: (1) strengthening seed systems via influence; (2) advancing value added products through innovation and teaching (3) building farmers capacity through knowledge sharing; and (4) serving as advocate and bridge between IITA researchers, community leaders, and farming communities through communicating research needs and community needs, and communicating farmer feedback to researchers. Additionally, the study identified several constraints to leadership development, including unmet expectations, gender-related barriers, and farmer-herder conflict. Theoretically, the study extended LICT and SIT to food systems and CS contexts, demonstrating how relational dynamics of identity claiming and granting operate within participatory agricultural development. Empirically, the study contributed to the food systems discourse by highlighting citizen scientists as community leaders in food systems development, while revealing how structural factors, such as cultural context, gender norms, and program design, shape the emergence and strength of leadership identity and food systems leadership. In practice, the findings have significant implications for the design of CS programs that intentionally cultivate leadership.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Adebayo, Bolanle Oyindamola"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"doctoral","degree_discipline":"Agricultural and Extension Education","degree_department":"Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Sunderman, Hannah Marie"],"committee_members":["Kaufman, Eric K.","Niewolny, Kimberly Lee","Landaverde, Rafael","Benavides, Mac"],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-01-21","date_published":"2026-01-21","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:15Z","subjects":["Farmers' leadership development; sustainable food system; unsupervised learning; participatory research; leadership in Africa"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45502"],"render_values":[{"text":"vt_gsexam:45502","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/10919/140929","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Sunderman, Hannah Marie"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Kaufman, Eric K.","Niewolny, Kimberly Lee","Landaverde, Rafael","Benavides, Mac"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Adebayo, Bolanle Oyindamola"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2026-01-22T09:00:42Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2026-01-22T09:00:42Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2026-01-21"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Agricultural and Extension Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["doctoral"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Farmers' leadership development; sustainable food system; unsupervised learning; participatory research; leadership in Africa"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45502"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/140929"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Although participation in citizen science (CS) projects is a viable avenue for encouraging grassroots leadership in agricultural settings, there has been limited research on the impact of CS on the formation of leadership identities and leadership behaviors in food systems. Therefore, this phenomenological case study explored the personal and social experiences of participating in the CS initiative Triadic Comparison of Technologies (tricot) and the implications for the development of leadership identity and food systems leadership among Nigerian farmers. Guided by Leadership Identity Construction Theory (LICT) and Social Identity Theory (SIT), the study explored how tricot participants claimed and were granted a leadership identity, subsequently exercising that identity to develop local food systems. Data were collected from 68 participants across four stakeholder groups: 15 tricot farmers (in-depth interviews), 25 colleagues of tricot farmers (focus group discussions), 22 community and farmers' group leaders (focus group discussions), and 6 International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) implementing staff (focus group discussions). Using hermeneutic phenomenology and thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke's (2006) approach, the study revealed that tricot participation facilitated leadership identity development through worthiness derived from enhanced occupational competencies and affiliation with legitimate institutions, resulting in leader identity. Farmers claimed leadership identities by recognizing themselves as onímọ̀ (knowledgeable persons) on agricultural matters, while communities granted leadership recognition by ascribing the status of ẹniyàn pàtàkì (important person), offering positional responsibilities, and consistently seeking farmers' advisory services. Implementing institutions' legitimacy facilitated the development of Osun state tricot participants' leadership identities, while community engagement strategies supported it. Additionally, tricot's design for knowledge co-creation, its presence in the community, and its multi-season engagement solidified the leadership identity construction process. Further, the findings revealed that Osun state tricot farmers exercised food systems leadership by: (1) strengthening seed systems via influence; (2) advancing value added products through innovation and teaching (3) building farmers capacity through knowledge sharing; and (4) serving as advocate and bridge between IITA researchers, community leaders, and farming communities through communicating research needs and community needs, and communicating farmer feedback to researchers. Additionally, the study identified several constraints to leadership development, including unmet expectations, gender-related barriers, and farmer-herder conflict. Theoretically, the study extended LICT and SIT to food systems and CS contexts, demonstrating how relational dynamics of identity claiming and granting operate within participatory agricultural development. Empirically, the study contributed to the food systems discourse by highlighting citizen scientists as community leaders in food systems development, while revealing how structural factors, such as cultural context, gender norms, and program design, shape the emergence and strength of leadership identity and food systems leadership. In practice, the findings have significant implications for the design of CS programs that intentionally cultivate leadership."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstractgeneral","label":"General Abstract","values":["Across agricultural communities, farmers are stepping into leadership roles to strengthen local food systems. This study explored how farmers in Osun State, Nigeria, participating in a citizen science project called tricot (Triadic Comparison of Technologies), not only developed farming skills but also emerged as community leaders. Through interviews and focus group discussions with 68 people, including tricot farmers, their neighbors, community leaders, and staff from the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), this study explored how Osun state farmers' experiences in the project shaped their confidence, their status in the community, and their ability to influence local agriculture. Farmers described how participating in tricot helped them improve their knowledge of cassava and sweet potato farming and processing. As the project was run through a trusted institution, farmers took pride in their involvement and enjoyed elevated status in society. Many of the Osun tricot farmers began to see themselves as knowledgeable agricultural advisers, and their communities agreed, often calling on them for guidance, assigning them responsibilities, and treating them as important contributors to food-related matters within the community. The study also revealed that tricot farmers in Osun State played a key role in enhancing their local food systems. They shared improved cassava varieties with others, taught new processing skills, offered farming advice, and helped connect researchers with community members so that everyone's needs and ideas could be heard. In many ways, they acted as bridges between scientific research and everyday farming realities. However, the study also highlighted challenges that can limit leadership development. Some farmers felt discouraged when expectations were not met, and women sometimes faced cultural or gender-related barriers that restricted their participation. Overall, this study showed that citizen science can be a powerful tool for building grassroots leadership in agriculture. It demonstrated how farmers learn, grow, and step into leadership responsibilities when they are meaningfully involved in research that affects their lives. It also emphasized the importance of designing citizen science programs that support long-term leadership development, especially by recognizing cultural context, gender dynamics, and community needs. By understanding these farmers' experiences, we gained insight into how local people can help strengthen food systems from the ground up."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"dc:format.medium","label":"Dc Format Medium","values":["ETD"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Exploring Participation in Citizen Science for Leadership Identity Development and Food Systems Leadership: A Case Study of Tricot"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.committeechair":["Sunderman, Hannah Marie"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Kaufman, Eric K.","Niewolny, Kimberly Lee","Landaverde, Rafael","Benavides, Mac"],"dc:contributor.department":["Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education"],"dc:creator":["Adebayo, Bolanle Oyindamola"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2026-01-22T09:00:42Z"],"dc:date.available":["2026-01-22T09:00:42Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2026-01-21"],"dc:description.abstract":["Although participation in citizen science (CS) projects is a viable avenue for encouraging grassroots leadership in agricultural settings, there has been limited research on the impact of CS on the formation of leadership identities and leadership behaviors in food systems. Therefore, this phenomenological case study explored the personal and social experiences of participating in the CS initiative Triadic Comparison of Technologies (tricot) and the implications for the development of leadership identity and food systems leadership among Nigerian farmers. Guided by Leadership Identity Construction Theory (LICT) and Social Identity Theory (SIT), the study explored how tricot participants claimed and were granted a leadership identity, subsequently exercising that identity to develop local food systems. Data were collected from 68 participants across four stakeholder groups: 15 tricot farmers (in-depth interviews), 25 colleagues of tricot farmers (focus group discussions), 22 community and farmers' group leaders (focus group discussions), and 6 International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) implementing staff (focus group discussions). Using hermeneutic phenomenology and thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke's (2006) approach, the study revealed that tricot participation facilitated leadership identity development through worthiness derived from enhanced occupational competencies and affiliation with legitimate institutions, resulting in leader identity. Farmers claimed leadership identities by recognizing themselves as onímọ̀ (knowledgeable persons) on agricultural matters, while communities granted leadership recognition by ascribing the status of ẹniyàn pàtàkì (important person), offering positional responsibilities, and consistently seeking farmers' advisory services. Implementing institutions' legitimacy facilitated the development of Osun state tricot participants' leadership identities, while community engagement strategies supported it. Additionally, tricot's design for knowledge co-creation, its presence in the community, and its multi-season engagement solidified the leadership identity construction process. Further, the findings revealed that Osun state tricot farmers exercised food systems leadership by: (1) strengthening seed systems via influence; (2) advancing value added products through innovation and teaching (3) building farmers capacity through knowledge sharing; and (4) serving as advocate and bridge between IITA researchers, community leaders, and farming communities through communicating research needs and community needs, and communicating farmer feedback to researchers. Additionally, the study identified several constraints to leadership development, including unmet expectations, gender-related barriers, and farmer-herder conflict. Theoretically, the study extended LICT and SIT to food systems and CS contexts, demonstrating how relational dynamics of identity claiming and granting operate within participatory agricultural development. Empirically, the study contributed to the food systems discourse by highlighting citizen scientists as community leaders in food systems development, while revealing how structural factors, such as cultural context, gender norms, and program design, shape the emergence and strength of leadership identity and food systems leadership. In practice, the findings have significant implications for the design of CS programs that intentionally cultivate leadership."],"dc:description.abstractgeneral":["Across agricultural communities, farmers are stepping into leadership roles to strengthen local food systems. This study explored how farmers in Osun State, Nigeria, participating in a citizen science project called tricot (Triadic Comparison of Technologies), not only developed farming skills but also emerged as community leaders. Through interviews and focus group discussions with 68 people, including tricot farmers, their neighbors, community leaders, and staff from the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), this study explored how Osun state farmers' experiences in the project shaped their confidence, their status in the community, and their ability to influence local agriculture. Farmers described how participating in tricot helped them improve their knowledge of cassava and sweet potato farming and processing. As the project was run through a trusted institution, farmers took pride in their involvement and enjoyed elevated status in society. Many of the Osun tricot farmers began to see themselves as knowledgeable agricultural advisers, and their communities agreed, often calling on them for guidance, assigning them responsibilities, and treating them as important contributors to food-related matters within the community. The study also revealed that tricot farmers in Osun State played a key role in enhancing their local food systems. They shared improved cassava varieties with others, taught new processing skills, offered farming advice, and helped connect researchers with community members so that everyone's needs and ideas could be heard. In many ways, they acted as bridges between scientific research and everyday farming realities. However, the study also highlighted challenges that can limit leadership development. Some farmers felt discouraged when expectations were not met, and women sometimes faced cultural or gender-related barriers that restricted their participation. Overall, this study showed that citizen science can be a powerful tool for building grassroots leadership in agriculture. It demonstrated how farmers learn, grow, and step into leadership responsibilities when they are meaningfully involved in research that affects their lives. It also emphasized the importance of designing citizen science programs that support long-term leadership development, especially by recognizing cultural context, gender dynamics, and community needs. By understanding these farmers' experiences, we gained insight into how local people can help strengthen food systems from the ground up."],"dc:description.degree":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"dc:format.medium":["ETD"],"dc:identifier.other":["vt_gsexam:45502"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/140929"],"dc:language.iso":["en"],"dc:publisher":["Virginia Tech"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright"],"dc:rights.uri":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["Farmers' leadership development; sustainable food system; unsupervised learning; participatory research; leadership in Africa"],"dc:title":["Exploring Participation in Citizen Science for Leadership Identity Development and Food Systems Leadership: A Case Study of Tricot"],"dc:type":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Agricultural and Extension Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["doctoral"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"thesis:institution_name":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:15Z"}