Summary : This volume of abstracts of the master’s theses and doctoral dissertations of SEARCA scholars is the fourth in a series and covers the years 1997 to 2003. This publication constitutes an invaluable source of scientific information contributed by Southeast Asian scholars. Most of the studies here are unpublished and hence, this volume is a valuable record of their existence. It is also a handy reference for students, teachers, scholars, researchers, extension agents, and policymakers in agriculture and related fields.

To give the reader a holistic view of each study, the results are often preceded by brief statements of the main objective(s), the methodology of collecting relevant information, and the statistical treatment or analysis of the data. Important implications and recommendations are included whenever necessary to round up the research study. The graduate student is thus introduced to the requisite parts of a study report, which may serve as his or her guide in the preparation of his or her own theses.

The abstracts are arranged alphabetically by author and country of origin. The master’s theses are presented first, followed by the doctoral dissertations. Separate author index and subject index are provided for the reader’s convenience in locating needed information, including the authors themselves.