Over the time that I’ve been here, I’ve noticed that many family farmers are wondering which of their children will take over the farm. Some kids already show interest; others need some prodding. The 4H club is a way for parents to get their kids started by participating in various farm-related things such as showing animals, researching animals or plants, cooking, or other “farm” related tasks. This  is a good way for kids to learn responsibility and the ability to speak in front of a judge, which are good skills for later in life. It is interesting though how parents want to push this on their children when the goal is for them to take over the family farm. It is almost as though the child has to fulfill a destiny; one of the children has to take over the farm or else it will go under or go into another company or person’s hands. There is a great responsibility that the kids of farmers bear without even choosing to do so in the first place. Sure, the kids could say that they don’t want to farm, but there is the pressure from their parents and the kids want to live up to the parents’ expectations that could sway them to stay and work on the farm. I’m not saying that no child of a farmer dreams of becoming a farmer, but that it is a responsibility that they carry from the moment they are born. This must bring a interesting family dynamic to the table.

Another thing to consider is the strain it might put on a farm marriage. If things are going poorly such as the farm crisis in the 1980s, fighting will ensue over the family’s finances–always a popular topic for marital disputes. Again the issue of the kids will rise. One parent might not want to push their kids towards farming, and another fight would arrise. This is another example of how farming has and never will be an easy lifestyle. The wife and husband might also differ in their opinion of how the farm should be run, what should be purchased, and/or whether the farm should be operated as an organic or commodity entity.

Sadly, I have no personal experience with this family dynamic, but it would be a fascinating topic for a psychological study. Farm families have to deal with the traditional pressures of life in addition to the family strains of farming. You also have to take into account that farming as a family would be able to bring everyone together. Also, take into account how well off the farmers are on their land, and how well the sales are for that year. As I’ve said before, I am actually rather sad that their aren’t more psychological studies about farming and farm families. Farmers may constitute an extraordinarily small portion of our country’s population, but these people are in charge of our food system, and we need to better under the psychology of those who make up this critical sector of our economy.