摘要：County Extension offices are responsible for the majority of programmingdelivered in the United States. The purpose of this study was to identify andexplore assets influencing the quality of county Extension programs. A basicqualitative research design was followed to conduct constant comparativeanalysis of five Extension county program review reports. Using the appreciativeinquiry process as the lens through which to view the county program reviewreports revealed multiple assets leading to quality programming. Assets of thereviewed county Extension programs were found to cluster within the followingthemes: competent and enthusiastic Extension faculty, community partnerships,engaged and supportive stakeholders, effective resource management, sufficientand stable workforce, meeting stakeholder needs, positive reputation, access tofacilities, positive relationships between county and state faculty, and innovativepractices. The use of both needs-based and assets-based paradigms will provideExtension organizations with a more holistic understanding of its assets and aresearch-based foundation from which to make decisions about strengthening theorganization at all levels.
关键词：appreciative inquiry; assets; capacity development
