A dinâmica das mudanças em unidades de produção rural: estudo comparativo no município de Pato Branco (PR)

Abstract

The process of organizational change constitutes a highly complex theme due to the a host of both internal and external organizational factors that may cause changes to be either facilitated or restricted. Such process, which may come as the result of a previuos planning or otherwise will also feature a varied amplitude which enables it to result in either incremented changes, when comprising but a few organizational features or strategical, if a large number of such components get reached by the process. Using these as a starting point we aimed at learning, simulating and analizing in a comparative way, the main changes in family agro-business production units in two distinct locations in the town of Pato Branco PR, which have shown to be contrastive concerning general development and the exploitation of agriculture. A qualitative survey was employed, having the non-structured survey as research technic. Twelve typical agriculturists from each location, along with three rural extension technicians from Pato Branco were interviewed. In order to reconstruct and learn the changes a processual, contextual and historic perspective was adopted. In order to proceed as for the analysis, the changes were considered as having occurred within certain strategical periods. The five most representative strategical periods for the production units in each location were identified and it was verified that the local natural and social-economical conditions did represent relevant enabling factors for the huge contrasts in development between both locations. In spite of such contrast, most of the changes implemented by the studied producers are of incremental nature. Such changes are not usually planned for they occur as these agriculturists’ reactions to unforeseen new administrative situations.