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March blog

March 2023

As a scholar formally trained in applied research, my early career did focus on things like publishing, grants – but for me as a guy who grew up believing I should try to help were I could, I needed to take it further.  Early on I was fortunate enough to find an opportunity to apply my research to the situations in which it was intended. And that was when I got it, I think.

That Extension and Research were meant to be in harmony, two sides of the same coin. The discovery and implementation of that discovery in the communities it was intended.

Now this is not to say that all research is applied, in fact we need basic discovery to better understand the nature of things. However, all the best Extension begins with understanding the situation and I would posit some community engagement; we often think of this as needs assessment. For newer issues, this needs assessment involves data science, talking with people and maybe even a survey or two. Hmm this sounds like applied research on some level. 

What do I mean? I learned early on through my research about economic and financial socialization, the process by which youth learn financial habits and behaviors from observing and being told how to do it themselves. Even better when they get a chance to apply these things. I used this to better understand and develop programs that would bridge some of these gaps from reality experiences to stock market simulations to entrepreneurship competitions. 

And it didn’t stop there it never does, whether it was financial vulnerability of business owners or financial toxicity in oncology patients, the learning and discovery led to innovative interventions and programs that are impactful to those who helped inform their creation. This helped create programs for farm succession planning and even convinced some to sponsor and provide funding for such events.  

I recently shared some of these thoughts on the powerful link between research and extension at the Center for Advanced Innovation in Agriculture Big Event. I saw a few eyes meet mine and I knew that I was among many kindred spirits and my passion for applied research was safe here at Virginia Tech and Virginia cooperative Extension. 

  1. Hall, J., Szurek, S., Cho, H.D., Guo, Y., Gutter, M., Khalil, G., Licht, J., Shenkman, E. (2022) Cancer disparities related to poverty and rurality for 22 top cancers in Florida. Preventive Medicine Reports ul 22;29:101922. doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2022.101922. PMID: 35928594; PMCID: PMC9344025. 

  2. Worthy, S., Mountain, T., Chatterjee, S., Johnson, C., Kiss D.E., O'Neill, B., Saboe- Wounded Head, L., Gutter, M.S. (2021). Differences in the determinants of retirement preparation between farm and non-farm households. Journal of Applied Farm Economics 3(2), 10.7771/2331-9151.1048 

  3. Mountain, T.P., Gutter, M.S., Ruiz-Menjivar, J. & Copur, Z.(2017). Exploring the role of financial disclosure forms in mortgage type selection. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 28(2), 285-299. https://doi.org/10.1891/1052-3073.28.2.285 

  4. Gutter, M., Copur, Z., & Garrison, S. (2010). Social learning opportunities and the financial behaviors of college students. Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 38(4), 387-404. 

  5. Gutter, M.S. & Saleem, T. (2005). Financial vulnerability of small businesses owners: Portfolio composition. Financial Services Review, 14, 133-147.