摘要：The author discusses the results of an investigation which he carried out in four Croatian villages in 1968. The investigation covered 400 young people and was designed to supply information on the position and work conditions of young people working on private farms or in non-agricultural activities and on the satisfaction they find in their respective work. The investigation showed that, in comparison with other interviewed groups of rural youth (pupils of the last form of elementary school, secondary school children, and young people with regular jobs), young farmers have a definitely unfavourable position. While as manpower they have the same status as the adult members of the household, they are often assigned the heaviest jobs on the farm while having only a negligible influence on production policy and on decision —- marking within the family. A large proportion of young farmers are active outside the farm from time to time, 20.1%—58.3% according to individual village, with one out of four working outside the farm for more than three months in the course of one year. Lack of mechanization requires great physical strain for certain types of farm work, and according to the interviewed young people many of them would stay on the farm if land cultivation and other farm work were mechanized. As regards share in farm work, pupils in the final form of elementary school come immediately after young farmers. The measure in which members of this youngest group of interviewees are occupied with both school work and work on the farm and in the household can best be seen from the fact that they have the smallest average amount of leisure (3 hours a day) in comparison with the other three groups. According to the author, this position of elementary school children within" the family household accounts partly for their wish to take up non-agricultural occupations. The investigation also showed that on the average young farmers on private smallholdings are less busy than are young people who have regular job outside the farm, despite the fact that the investigation was carried out during the main season. However, young people with regular job appear to derive a greater satisfaction from their work than do young farmers.
