FIGURE 4-1 Pest Management Decision-Making Proposal

irrespective of whether options are screened and selected on the basis of their ecological properties or for other attributes (Reichelderfer et al., 1984).

First, knowledge of the pest control user groups' perceptions helps to identify and define the real problems that need to be addressed in the development of programs. Second, knowledge of the user groups' resource base and the institutional framework within which the group operates—producers or those who advise them —prevents the conduct of research that might otherwise lead to the development of unfeasible or inappropriate technology. Third, the use of economic criteria to develop and refine pest control strategies helps to ensure that the end-product of the research is not only feasible and ecologically appropriate in this context but also preferable to the users' current approaches. Demonstrations of the relative economic advantages of various pest control