Farm ownership is a demanding profession with significant mental health challenges. The unique pressures of the role, combined with severe mental health care barriers, affect farmers across the country.
Recent research from the University of Georgia College of Public Health sheds light on the stressors female farm owners and managers face - challenges that can be overlooked in broader studies of agricultural well-being.
Through a series of interviews, researchers identified key stressors for this population, including animal mortality, succession planning for farms and the impact of gender roles and stereotypes.
"Physically, you're worried about injuries and illnesses, all those traditional stressors that farmers face," said Christina Proctor, lead author and associate professor of health promotion and behavior. "But then the women in these leadership roles are also thinking, 'How am I going to act in a way that the men working in this occupation respect me and see me as their leader or their boss?'"
Animal loss, succession planning at front of mind
A key insight from the study was the toll of animal loss. This was not seen as commonly in interviews with male farmers, Proctor said.
"Female farmers were really stressed about how people outside of the farming community viewed their relationship with their animals," Proctor said. "They said, 'While they're our animals, we feel like we're guardians and need to protect them.' When they lose one of them, it's really hard."
Stress associated with animal wellbeing may be exacerbated in times where animal disease is more prevalent, an important consideration given recent news about the spread of bird flu in the United States.
Proctor noted that while both male and female farmers talked about operational continuity in interviews, female farmers identified succession planning as a major source of stress, with women facing more difficulties when coming into ownership.
Perspectives varied among farmers. First generation farmers were concerned about working hard to establish the farm and wanting someone to continue that legacy. Others, including a few fifth-generation farmers, worried about being "the woman who loses the farm," said Proctor.
Gender disparities, stereotypes add new layer of stress
The study also found that female farmers grapple with broader gender disparities in agriculture. Many feel pressure to prove themselves and navigate expectations that they must be both authoritative leaders and nurturing caretakers. Some adopt more traditionally masculine traits to gain respect, often leading to internal conflict.
"The conflict between the necessity of working long hours to keep the farm running and the expectation of keeping up with housework and childcare duties was a major stressor for many of the women we spoke with," said study co-author and doctoral student Noah Hopkins.
"As I was doing the interviews, I was blown away by the women and what they have to do on a day-to-day basis. Just being a female farmer is amazing," Proctor said, "but then trying to navigate the cultural nuances that exist in being a female that works in a male-dominated sector is its own challenge."
One interviewee noted that when people see her on the farm or in her office, they ask for "the bossman" and assume she is not the one in charge. Even when they are the primary decision maker, male family members will be addressed first.
Building community and resources
Gathering data is an important step toward finding the best ways to support female farmers.
"Farmers are already very isolated," Proctor said. "If you're the only woman within four counties, how do we connect you with other women who are doing this? It starts with more peer-to-peer programs and more spaces for female agricultural leaders to get together just to talk about these things."
These changes can benefit farming overall, Proctor said. Female farmers tend to lean into communal leadership, empathize with laborers and work collaboratively. These farms see more sustainable practices regarding work/life balance and community building, and studies have shown that this practice can improve rates of poverty in communities where it is implemented.
"I think farming and agriculture will benefit greatly for more female leadership," Proctor said. "Right now, if it's really hard for women to work in that sector, we need to ask ourselves, 'How do we create programs or initiatives that ensure more women feel comfortable going into those spaces and represented within agricultural meetings, commodity meetings and more?'"
The study was also co-authored by masters' student Chase Reece and Lauren Ledbetter Griffeth, UGA Cooperative Extension leadership specialist.
