European agriculture is experiencing a recruitment crisis that threatens the continuation of both family farming and associated rural communities. Conventionally, researchers and policymakers see farm succession as driven by discrete factors such as education level, farm size, profitability, enterprise type, and so on. This article offers an alternative perspective. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 22 farm families in Scotland, it uses a single case-study to outline the concept of endogenous succession cycles based on the iterative and interlinked development of successor identity and farm structure. In this way, succession is seen as predominantly socially constructed. We suggest that the key to succession lies in the development and maintenance of these endogenous cycles as, when they are broken or uninitiated, attracting a successor on to the farm is likely to be exceptionally difficult whatever the policy incentive. We conclude that the current crisis can partly be explained by the breakdown of early childhood socialisation, a key stage of the cycle, caused by changes to agriculture such as the use of larger machinery, more health and safety regulations, fewer farm workers, and so on. As a result, the process of constructing successor identities in early childhood through extended contact between the farmer, the child and the farm is becoming increasingly difficult. The need for a socially constructivist understanding of family farm successionA lthough family farming 1 remains the dominant form of farm organisation in many parts of the economically developed world, e.g., USA, Europe (Brookfield 2008) and Australia (Pritchard et al. 2007), the certainty of continuity is declining. Factors such as the ongoing price-cost squeeze, land price inflation, changing rural and non-rural labour markets, changing agricultural policy regimes, and increasingly individualistic values are all contributing to the decline in the successful intergenerational transfer of family farms. This has concerned researchers for many years and spawned a considerable number of investigations into farm succession 2 .Most have followed what we term 'factor-based' approaches where succession is seen as the result of a combination of favourable discrete factors.

Purpose -In most of the literature, knowledge management is treated as a universal practice, which is transferable from one country or company to another. There are some empirical hints that this is not always the case. The main research question, which this paper aims to answer, is: Which cultural characteristics in Germany and Hong Kong influence knowledge transfer?Design/methodology/approach -A qualitative and exploratory approach has been used to answer the research question. A series of 13 in-depth interviews was conducted during April and May 2008 with experts from a range of various professional backgrounds in Hong Kong and Germany. Approaches of cultural characteristics are discussed and linked with the topic of knowledge transfer.Findings -The findings show that knowledge transfer depends on national cultural characteristics which are power distance, performance orientation, in-group collectivism, and uncertainty avoidance.Research limitations/implications -As the research was conducted in two countries only, the findings cannot be generalized. In addition the sample is limited to only 13 interviewees. Therefore, further and also quantitative research is necessary.Practical implications -If companies introduce knowledge management systems in order to support worldwide knowledge transfer, national cultural characteristics have to be taken into account; it is not enough to provide only the technology.Originality/value -Findings of cultural studies (e.g. GLOBE) and the approach of knowledge transfer are linked with each other. Moreover, empirical evidence is given for the cases Hong Kong and Germany.

This article addresses the issues raised by Chiswell and Lobley concerning our publication 'Understanding Farm Succession as Socially Constructed Endogenous Cycles'. Our response rebuts Chiswell and Lobley's criticisms of the article and assembles evidence from the literature to suggest that in a number of countries and regions of Europe, farm succession failure is at crisis levels. We suggest that the primary source of Chiswell and Lobley's optimism is the international FARMTRANSFERS survey, which they interpret as providing a positive assessment of farm transfer within the family. We present an alternative interpretation of their conclusions.

El sistema universitario español está basado en una docencia presencial. No obstante, a causa de la pandemia de la COVID-19, las aulas han sufrido un proceso de reconversión y se han visto obligadas a adaptar sus metodologías docentes a otras que garanticen una formación adecuada. El artículo presenta una descripción del contexto académico y las actividades llevadas a cabo para adaptar la docencia presencial del inglés en una docencia a distancia, con un análisis de las asignaturas de Inglés II (384 estudiantes) y de Inglés IV (218 estudiantes). La experiencia docente presentada muestra buenos resultados, con ejercicios más lúdicos, más interactivos y menos convencionales. Estos resultados se vinculan al carácter transversal de las asignaturas en los diferentes grados de la universidad, ya que estas actividades ayudan a generar una mayor motivación entre los estudiantes.

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