A QUESTIONNAIRE MAILED TO 98 AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION AGENTS IN NORTH CAROLINA WITH PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY IN AGRONOMY IN THEIR COUNTIES WAS USED TO COLLECT DATA ON THE AGENTS' PERCEPTION OF THE NATURE AND FREQUENCY OF PERFORMANCE BY DEALERS IN SOIL FERTILITY PROGRAMS, AGENTS' FEELINGS ABOUT DEALER PARTICIPATION, AND THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN AGENTS' PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS AND THEIR PERCEPTION OF DEALER PARTICIPATION. CORRELATIONS WERE CONSIDERED SIGNIFICANT AT THE .05 PERCENT LEVEL OF PROBABILITY. SIGNIFICANT POSITIVE CORRELATIONS WERE FOUND BETWEEN AGENTS' PERCEPTION OF THE EXPECTED FREQUENCY OF DEALER PARTICIPATION IN EXTENSION PROGRAMING AND AREAS IN WHICH AGENTS HAD TAKEN GRADUATE COURSES, AND BETWEEN AGENTS' ATTITUDES TOWARD THE NECESSITY OF DEALERS IN THE PROGRAM AND THEIR RELIABILITY AS FERTILIZER AUTHORITIES. NO SIGNIFICANT ASSOCIATION OCCURRED BETWEEN AGENTS' PERCEPTION AND THEIR AGE, TOTAL EXTENSION TENURE, PRESENT COUNTY TENURE, DEGREE, UNDERGRADUATE FIELD, ATTITUDE TOWARD DEALER COMPETITION WITH EXTENSION, OR THE NUMBER OF SOIL TESTS AND DEMONSTRATIONS REPORTED. (THERE ARE TABLES, A GLOSSARY, AND REFERENCES.) THIS DOCUMENT IS A MASTERS THESIS AVAILABLE FROM NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY, RALEIGH. (AUTHOR/AJ)