Diffusion of Innovations

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Chapter 7

• Diffusion of Innovations

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Diffusion

• The process by which an innovation is
  communicated through certain channels over time
  among the members of a social system
• Innovation an idea, practice, or object
  perceived as new by an individual or other unit
  of adoption

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Everett Rogers

• Diffusion of Innovations (1995)
• All the studies involved
• An innovation
• Communication between two people
• A society or community setting
• The element of time
• His theory states that an innovation spreads
  throughout society in a predictable pattern.

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The Adopter Categories

• the classifications of individuals within a
  social system on the basis of innovativeness
• Innovators
• Early adopters
• Early majority
• Late majority
• Laggards

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Innovators

• Venturesome and ready to try new things
• Their social relationships tend to be more
  cosmopolitan than others

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Early Adopters

• Produce the most opinion leaders
• Are sought out for information about new
  innovations
• Their advice is valued
• Respected for their willingness to try new
  innovations

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Early Majority

• Includes people who do not wish to be the first
  to adopt new ideas
• Prefer to deliberate before making a decision
• They legitimate an innovation.

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The Late Majority

• Skeptical
• Cautious about the benefits of adopting the new
  idea
• Wait until the rest of the community has adopted
  it first
• Peer pressure may be a motivator
• Economic necessity

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The Laggards

• Last to adopt
• Tied to the past
• Traditional
• Reluctant to try new things

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Origin of the Diffusion of Innovations Theory

• Based upon theories of Gabriel Tarde, a 19th
  century French legal scholar and sociologist
• Laws of Imitation (1903)
• Introduced opinion leadership

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Conceptual Roots

• Imitation is essential to diffusion
• Firmly rooted in psychology
• Social learning theory
• Symbolic modeling

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Diffusion Process
Learn about innovation
Adopt innovation or perform new behavior
Interact with others in a social network and
either encourage them to adopt new behavior or
confirm your own decision to adopt the behavior
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Diffusion Process Learning About the Innovation

• Symbolic modeling is most common source of
  influence
• Innovations that are difficult to understand take
  longer to be adopted
• May learn about new innovation through
• Television
• Newspaper
• Interpersonal contacts

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Diffusion Process Adoption of the Innovation

• Incentives to adopt new innovations
• Many benefits
• Self-efficacy
• Status symbol
• Individual values and perceptions of self
• Easy to test before adopting

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Diffusion Process Developing Social Networks
After Adoption

• Interpersonal communication among casual
  acquaintances allows people to learn of
  innovations

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The Diffusion and Adoption Process

• Knowledge
• People become aware of new idea
• Persuasion
• Individual weighs advantages
• Decision
• Final decision of adoption or rejection
• Confirmation
• Seek validation and evaluate consequences

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Important Diffusion Studies

• Wisslers Study of Diffusion of Horses among
  Plains Indians
• The introduction of horses disrupted the peaceful
  existence of the Plains Indians
• The Iowa Hybrid Corn Seed Study
• Farmers had been slow to adopt the hybrid seed
  corn because it was relatively expensive
• Diffusion of News Studies
• News diffused much more rapidly than other
  innovations.

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Current and Future Diffusion Research

• News diffusion from either broadcast or print
  media or both
• AIDS-related diffusion
• Family planning promotion
• Continued use of diffusion research for solutions
  to practical problems
• Employ additional theories to aid the study of
  diffusion