The elements of intuition in decision-making: A multidimensional framework based on Finnish regenerative farmers’ experiences

Abstract

Global environmental change induces the demand for urgent and transformative action to shift the paradigm in agricultural practices from degenerative to regenerative. The decision-making of farmers has a significant role for our future, since agriculture has an enormous impact on the well-being of our planet. This study explores intuition in regenerative farmers' (RF) decision-making. Regenerative agriculture (RA) might help mitigate climate change and strengthen overall socio-ecological resilience, in addition to producing food. While intuition has been recognised as expert-farmers’ primary decision-making process, research of subjective knowledge behind farmers' decision to transition to RA is limited. To fill this gap, this paper asks: How is intuition used and experienced in RFs' everyday-lives? The framework draws on experiences of 84 Finnish RFs who participated in Carbon Action research project. Data was collected via survey and interviews and analysed iteratively using a qualitative inductive approach (Gioia Method). Intuition appeared to have a significant role in RFs' decision-making and holistically in life, and is therefore linked to regenerative decision-making. A multidimensional framework of the elements of intuition was created as a result. The findings reveal and operationalise the concealed, essential nature of intuition, and enable the incorporation of this elusive phenomenon into agricultural discourses where it is currently absent. Transforming discourses also has leverage to transform the paradigm of decision-making to a regenerative form. The findings confirm the significance of intuition in RFs’ decision-making, and establish novel directions for future research on intuition in decision-making in agriculture and beyond.