“Move forward”: A marginalia analysis of farmers’ mental health management strategies

Human health in agriculture is essential to the sustainability of the field. Mental health of people who work in agriculture has been concerning to community members, researchers, and practitioners as suicide rates have been higher than the general population. This study involved surveys of agricultural producers about their mental health, barriers to accessing care, farming experience, and demographic information. In total, n = 67 surveys were returned with comments or markings outside of the structure of the survey (marginalia). We conducted a qualitative analysis of this unique form of data to understand themes related to mental health in agriculture. Using grounded theory techniques, the analysis revealed themes related to dealing with mental health, and more specifically, three subthemes of self-reliance, religion, and distancing/minimizing mental health. Findings highlight how dealing with mental health for this subgroup of agricultural producers meant using one's own resources and not relying on other people or healthcare for assistance or support. Findings from the current study can be used to align outreach efforts to support people who work in agriculture and demonstrate the value of unanticipated data, particularly in relation to hard-to-reach populations such as agricultural producers.