Nexus between Technology Adoption and the Development of Dairy Cooperatives in Kiambu County, Kenya

Abstract

Cooperatives societies are part and parcel of an increasing number of people in formal and informal employment the world over. The study sought to examine the effect of the adoption of technology on the development of dairy cooperatives. Grounded on the Social Capital Theory, this study adopted the descriptive research design. In this study, the target population was 59,635 registered Dairy Cooperative members while the sample size was 398 respondents who were picked via stratified random sampling. Data collection involved questionnaires that contained 5-point scale Likert-type statements. Descriptive and inferential statistics were carried out. In this case, tests such as central tendency (mean), frequencies, percentages, and standard deviation in addition to Pearson and regression analysis were utilized. The findings show that the factor under investigation has a significant influence on the development of dairy cooperatives. This is evidenced by a positive and statistically significant relationship between technology adoption and the development of dairy cooperatives (r=.646, p<0.001). These findings are corroborated by results from multivariate regression analysis that shows that the technology adoption statistically significantly predicted the DV, F=68.052, p <0.05. This would go on to enhance their development. The study recommends that there is a need for dairy cooperatives to put in place mechanisms for buttressing access to technology. Further, the study recommends the need for policies to be in place to strengthen research on the challenges facing dairy cooperatives development. Policies should also be put in place to create a favorable environment for technology adoption.