Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of internet usage on financial performance of small farm business households in the USA. In particular, the authors want to assess the impact of internet usage on small farm businesses, where the owner’s main occupation is farming. Using a nationwide farm-level data in the USA and a non-parametric matching estimator, the study finds a significant positive impact of internet usage on gross cash income, total household income, off-farm income. The study further suggests that small farm businesses receive benefits from internet usage as it facilitates reduction in income risk through off-farm income sources, as well as a reduction in marketing and storage costs; households’ non-farm transportation and vehicle leasing expenses. Design/methodology/approach - In this study, the authors use the “nearest neighbors” matching method in treatment evaluation, developed by Abadie and Imbens (2002). In this method, a weighting index is applied to all observations and “nearest neighbors” are identified (Abadie Findings - The study suggests that small farm business households using the internet are better off in terms of total household income and off-farm income. As compared to the control group (which is counterfactual, representation of small farm businesses not using the internet), small farm businesses using the internet earn about $24,000-$26,000 more in total household income and about $27,000-$28,000 more in off-farm income. Also, small farm businesses using the internet earn about $4,100-$4,900 more in gross cash farm income compared to their counterpart. The estimate of ATT for NFI is not different from zero. However, gross cash farm revenue increased significantly. Practical implications - To this end internet can provide an important role in information gathering. Internet is one of the convenient means to access and exchange information. Information and communication facilitation through internet have opened up new areas of commerce, social networking, information gathering, and recreational activities beyond a geographical bound. Producers and consumers can take advantages of internet in both collaborative and competitive aspects in economic activities as it can reduce the information asymmetries among economic agents. Social implications - Farmers will seek assistance in interpreting data and applying information to their farming operations, via the internet. Therefore, it is essential that land grant universities continue to improve the delivery of electronic extension and provide information in a clear and concise manner. Originality/value - Studies in farm households have mainly investigated factors influencing internet adoption, purchasing patterns through internet, internet use, and applications. In most cases, impact analyses of communication and information technologies such as internet in agricultural businesses are discussed with references to large scale farm businesses. Thus, the authors know very little about access to the internet when it comes to small farm businesses and small farm households and about how it impacts well-being of small farm households.

中文翻译：

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小型农户家庭的财务业绩：互联网的作用

目的-本文的目的是调查互联网使用对美国小型农场商业家庭财务业绩的影响。特别是，作者希望评估互联网对业主主要从事农业活动的小型农场企业的影响。使用美国全国范围的农场数据和非参数匹配估计量，该研究发现互联网使用对现金总收入，家庭总收入，农业收入的显着积极影响。该研究进一步表明，小型农场企业可以从互联网使用中受益，因为它可以通过非农业收入来源降低收入风险，并降低营销和仓储成本。家庭的非农业运输和车辆租赁费用。设计/方法/方法-在此研究中，作者使用“最近邻居”匹配方法进行治疗评估，这是由Abadie和Imbens（2002）开发的。在这种方法中，将加权指数应用于所有观察值，并确定“最近邻居”（Abadie Findings-研究表明，使用互联网的小型农户家庭的家庭总收入和非农业收入要好一些。与对照组相比（这是事实，不使用互联网的小型农场企业的代表），使用互联网的小型农场企业的家庭总收入增加了约$ 24,000- $ 26,000，非农业收入增加了约$ 27,000- $ 28,000。 ，相比之下，使用互联网的小型农场企业的现金农场总收入要高出约4,100-4,900美元，NFI的ATT估算值与零没有差异。但是，现金农场总收入显着增加。实际意义-为此，互联网可以在信息收集中发挥重要作用。互联网是访问和交换信息的便捷手段之一。通过互联网进行的信息和通讯便利化已经开辟了跨越地理界限的商业，社交网络，信息收集和娱乐活动的新领域。生产者和消费者可以在经济活动的合作和竞争方面利用互联网，因为它可以减少经济主体之间的信息不对称。社会影响-农民将通过互联网寻求帮助，以解释数据并将信息应用于其农业活动。因此，授予土地的大学必须继续改善电子扩展功能，并以简明扼要的方式提供信息，这一点至关重要。原创性/价值-农户的研究主要调查了影响互联网采用，通过互联网购买模式，互联网使用和应用程序的因素。在大多数情况下，将参考大型农场企业来讨论农业企业中通信和信息技术（例如互联网）的影响分析。因此，当涉及到小型农场企业和小型农户时，对于互联网的访问以及互联网如何影响小型农户的福祉，作者们知之甚少。原创性/价值-农户的研究主要调查了影响互联网采用，通过互联网购买模式，互联网使用和应用程序的因素。在大多数情况下，将参考大型农场企业来讨论农业企业中通信和信息技术（例如互联网）的影响分析。因此，当涉及到小型农场企业和小型农户时，对于互联网的访问以及互联网如何影响小型农户的福祉，作者们知之甚少。原创性/价值-农户的研究主要调查了影响互联网采用，通过互联网购买模式，互联网使用和应用程序的因素。在大多数情况下，将参考大型农场企业来讨论农业企业中通信和信息技术（例如互联网）的影响分析。因此，当涉及到小型农场企业和小型农户时，对于互联网的访问以及互联网如何影响小型农户的福祉，作者们知之甚少。