Change and Innovation

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• Change and Innovation
• change can occur through innovation
• innovations can be an idea, practice, or object
  that is perceived as new
• Diffusion of Innovations and hybrid seed corn

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• The Characteristics of an Innovation Impact the
  Adoption Rate
• relative advantage
• compatibility
• complexity
• trialability
• observability

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• Communication Channels are Critical in Diffusion
• opinion leaders
• friends and neighbors
• media
• Agents

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• Time is a Critical Element in Diffusion
• from knowledge of the innovation to adoption
• the innovativeness of the individual
• Recent compression of this process

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• For Diffusion to be Effective
• understand the norms of the group
• respond to client needs
• use opinion leaders
• anticipate consequences

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• Rodgers -- The Role of the Change Agent
• help people help themselves, work yourself out of
  a job
• two way information exchange is important --
  though most diffusion systems are centralized
• one way communication typifies most efforts

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Change agency Agent Client System

• Innovation must match client needs
• adjustments are needed in innovations
• need for an interface -- social and technical
  chasm

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• Social Marginality for Change Agents
• Role Conflicts -- 2 sets of behaviors -- norms
• problems with communication
• Agents must straddle two worlds
• Information overload -- must know clients needs
  and sort through and report

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The Sequence of Change Agent Roles 1.develop a
need for change 2.establish an information
exchange relationship 3.diagnose problems (client
perspective) 4.create an intent in the client to
change 5.translate intent into action 6.to
stabilize adoption/prevent discontinuance 7.to
achieve a terminal relationship
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• Rate of Adoption
• success in adoption related to effort in
  clientele contact
• Innovator/Adopter Categories
• THE S CURVE

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Adopter Categories
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Innovators

• Innovators are venturesome. They have a keen
  interest in new ideas this leads the innovators
  out of a local circle of peer networks and into
  more cosmopolite social relationships. Being an
  innovator has several prerequisites
• Control of substantial financial resources is
  helpful to absorb the possible loss from an
  unprofitable innovation
• The ability to understand and apply complex
  technical knowledge is also needed.
• The ability to cope with a high degree of
  uncertainty about the innovation at the time of
  adoption.
• Emotional resilient, willing to accept an
  occasional setback when a new idea proves
  unsuccessful.
• Innovators play an important role in the
  launching of a new idea in the system often by
  importing the innovation from outside systems
  boundaries. (Rodgers 1995 263)

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Early Adopters

• Early adopters are a more integrated part of the
  local social system than are innovators. Whereas
  innovators are cosmopolites, early adopters are
  localites.
• Potential adopters look to early adopters for
  advice and information about the innovation.  The
  early adopter is considered by many as "the
  individual to check with" before using a new
  idea.
• The early adopter is respected by their peers and
  is the embodiment of successful, discrete use of
  new ideas. The early adopter decreases
  uncertainty about a new idea by adopting it, then
  conveying a subjective evaluation of the
  innovation to near peers through interpersonal
  networks.

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Early Majority

• The early majority adopt new ideas just before
  the average person.
• The early majority interact frequently with their
  peers, but seldom hold positions of opinion
  leadership. They are an important link in the
  diffusion process and make up a third of the
  members in the system.
• The early majority will deliberate for some time
  before completely adopting a new idea. They
  follow with deliberate willingness in adopting
  innovations, but seldom lead.

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Late Majority

• The late majority adopt new ideas just after the
  average number of members in the system and make
  up one third of the membership. Adoption for the
  late majority may be both an organizational
  necessity and the result of increasing peer
  pressure.
• Innovations are approached with caution and
  skepticism and adoption is later rather than
  sooner. Most of the uncertainty about a new idea
  must be removed before the late majority feel it
  is safe to adopt.

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Laggards

• Laggards are the last in the social system to
  adopt an innovation. They are the most localite
  in their outlook of all adopter categories.
• Their decisions are often based on what has been
  done previously, and these individuals often
  interact with others who had relatively
  traditional values. Laggards tend to be
  suspicious of innovations and change agents.
• Their decision making process is often lengthy,
  as they need to be certain that a new idea will
  be successful before they adopt. Having said that
  consideration must be given to why laggards
  resist adoption and issues they identify should
  be explored.
• It is worth noting that some individuals may be
  laggards in one area and innovators or early
  adopters in others.

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• change agent success is positively related to a
  client orientation
• change agent success in securing adoption is
  positively related to meeting client needs
• felt needs -- should not relinquish role in
  shaping needs -- goal optimizing well-being
• change agent success in securing adoption is
  positively related to empathy with clients

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• Communication Campaigns
• hard to do effectively -- self selecting --
  people listen if they already know
• Can be successful if
• 1. Utilize formative evaluation
• 2. Set specific reasonable goals
• 3. Audience segmentation
• 4. Trigger interpersonal network communications

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• change agents have more contact with those with
  higher SES
• change agent work with those more socially active
• change agents work more with the better educated
• change agent success related to a cosmopolitan
  clientele
• adoption positively related to homogeneity
  between agent/client

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• Paraprofessional assistants
• cheaper per contact
• closer to clientele audience (EFNEP,FNP)
• lower status
• greater social expertness -- less technical
• professionals have social distance form
  assistants
• competence and safety credibility

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• Paraprofessional assistants
• change agent success is related to credibility in
  clients eyes
• Inauthentic professionalization
• take on manners, dress, or identify marks of
  professional
• destroys link with clientele
• threat to credibility

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• Opinion Leadership
• change agent success is positively related to the
  extent the agent works with opinion leaders
• adoption diffusion process
• opinion leaders may not be innovators
• innovators are not persuasive -- dont want an
  opinion leader to be perceived as an innovator

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• Demonstrations
• Observability increases adoption
• experimental demonstration -- effectiveness of
  innovation in the field -- dont want
  observability -- evaluation is the goal
• exemplary demonstration -- increase diffusion by
  observability

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• Demonstrations
• dont mix or confuse these types -- cant do both
• exemplary demonstrations need to be conducted
  with high visibility, optimistic assurance, and
  if possible with the help of an opinion leader

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• Clients evaluability
• change agents are more successful if they can
  increase clients ability to evaluate innovation
• should emphasize self-reliance--work yourself out
  of a job

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• Lippitt
• Forces of Change in Human Society
• new opportunities to modify the environment --
  specialization -- need for change agents
• need to adjust to todays environment--
  specialization -- need for change agents
• competition -- comparison to others

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• Change and resistance forces
• resolution is important part of program
• dissatisfaction or pain -- relief
• discrepancy between what is and should be
• external forces--norms and rules
• internal forces -- productivity or rationalization

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• Resistance forces
• clinging to old satisfactions
• suspicion and doubt of change agent
• change is deemed undesirable
• disappointment with change agent
• Resistance provides information about clientele
  -- motivations and difficulties
• Interference is different -- external to change
  agent/clientele--competing goals

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• Assessment of the client systems motivation and
  capacity to change
• include resistance, change forces, and
  interference
• Assessment of the change agents motivations and
  resources
• need to be motivated to help others -- not
  controlling
• need to be able to explain your motivations to
  clientele -- must be believable

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• Must decide if your skills are adequate for the
  problem
• professional ethics -- are you doing the right
  things
• are you choosing the right people to work with?
  What is you criteria
• appropriate objectives -- client based

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• Choosing the appropriate helping role
• 1) mediation and stimulating new connections
  within the system
• develop capacity within the system to
  act--interstitial groupings (handout on models)
• 2) Presenting expert knowledge on procedures
• 3)providing strength from within(conflict)
• TVA co-optation

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• Choosing the appropriate helping role
• 4) creating special environments -- places where
  people can learn and be safe -- 4-H, Girls and
  Boys Clubs
• 5)giving support during the process of change
• making them believe change is possible
• reinforce positive behavior
• keep clients expectations realistic

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• Establishment and maintenance of the relationship
  with the client system
• need for adequate sanctions(rewards)
• based on voluntary participation
• bait does not work well -- get what they want
  and leave
• commitment to change is needed
• understanding of community power structure --
  community work is difficult

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• Establishment and maintenance of the relationship
  with the client system
• clarifying expectations about change relationship
  -- commitment and work level, procedures
• regulating intensity and quality of helping
  relationship -- debate -- objective outsider vs.
  empathetic insider -- avoid excessive dependence

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• Recognizing and Guiding the phases of planned
  change
• emotional themes of helping relationships
• hostility/distrust
• admiration/affection
• business like interesting in achieving goals