A Qualitative Approach to Understanding Grain Bin Entry Decisions by Youth

Youths - defined as children under the age of 18 - are frequently involved in agricultural work. Parental assignment, briefing, and supervision of hazardous farm tasks have an influence on youth safety, yet many youths are injured or killed performing these tasks. This research utilized a qualitative approach to analyze why youths choose to make hazardous decisions regarding grain bin entry and factors that played a role in youths' decisions. Because we know that youth are working on the farm, the study's objective was to examine the parent-youth relationship to determine the conditions under which youth would follow or refuse their parents' orders. Ten students who attended a Midwestern land-grant institution were interviewed. Interviewees had experience working inside grain bins, were highly involved in their family farming operations while under 18 years old, and worked under frequent parental supervision. Interviewees shared conditions where they followed their parents' orders even when they knew the task was unsafe. Moreover, participants indicated when they would refuse orders from parents. Findings showed that the primary source of agricultural safety knowledge came from the interviewees' parents. Interviewees did not necessarily demonstrate a "blind trust" in their parents, as they were not willing to follow all orders they were asked to complete. However, all interviewees indicated that their parents would not ask them to do anything unsafe. Many barriers to farm safety were emphasized by the interviewees, which may contribute to youths choosing to make hazardous decisions regarding grain bin entry under some conditions. The research implications are emphasized relative to youth safety outcomes on family farms.