Economic value of management information systems in agriculture: a review of evaluation approaches

An important criterion for farmers to select an investment is its profitability. Difficulties arise when this criterion is applied to investments in management information systems (MIS), because the impact of MIS on farm performance is unclear. To cope with this problem, specific MIS evaluation approaches have to be applied. Two main types of research approaches are identified: normative and positive approaches. Normative approaches are considered to have limited potential in practice. The value of positive approaches, on the other hand, depends very much on the availability and quality of (longitudinal) field data and the type of research design. Experimental economics is identified as a means to obtain data on decision making in a highly controllable environment and is, therefore, considered to be an interesting alternative for MIS evaluation in agriculture.