Analytical framework
In the first part of the analyses, the study assessed specific varietal
characteristics that are preferred by farmers. In the second part,
factors influencing farmers’ preference for rice varietal traits were
assessed. To assess specific rice varietal characteristics that are
most preferred by farmers in a new rice variety, varietal attributes
were identified and farmers were made to rank them. The ranking
was evaluated using the Kendall’s coefficient of concordance (W) to
identify the varietal attributes that is most preferred by the farmers.
The Kendall’s coefficient of concordance (W) is a measure of
degree of agreement/concordance among m set of n ranks. It is an
index that measures the ratio of the observed variance of the sum
of ranks to the maximum possible variance of sum of ranks. The
essence of this index is to find the sum of the ranks for each
attribute/factor being ranked and to examine the variability of this
sum. If the rankings are in perfect agreement the variability among
these sums is said to be a minimum (Mattson, 1986).
The analysis is a statistical technique that is used to identify and