Diffusion of innovation

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Diffusion of innovation

• Theory and concepts

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Diffusion of Innovation

• Everett Rogers (1995) defined innovation
  diffusion as the process by which an innovation
  is communicated through certain channels over
  time among the members of a social system.
  (199511)
• The theory relies on four key concepts
  innovation, communication channels, time and
  social systems.

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Diffusion of innovation the concepts

• Innovation an idea, practice or object that is
  perceived as new by an individual or unit of
  adoption
• Communication channels the means by which
  individuals hear about an innovation
• Time refers to how long it takes for an
  innovation to be accepted, taken up and
  implemented by an individual or organisation
• Social system is the environment within which
  the diffusion process takes place.

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Innovation characteristics

• There are five characteristics of innovations
• Relative advantage
• Compatibility
• Complexity
• Trialability
• Observability

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Innovation characteristics
Relative advantage the degree to which an
innovation is perceived as better than the idea
that it supersedes. Whether the new idea is
really better than the one before it is
irrelevant as long as it is perceived as having
more of an advantage or appeal. The advantage
may be measured in terms of economic value as
well as social prestige, convenience or
satisfaction. Compatibility the degree to which
an innovation is perceived as being consistent
with the existing values, past experiences and
needs of potential adopters. An innovation that
does not fit, or is incompatible with a groups
social system, values and mores will not be
embraced as rapidly as one that is compatible.
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Innovation characteristics
Complexity The degree to which an innovation is
perceived as difficult to understand and use. The
more complex something is, or perceived to be,
the slower the rate of adoption within a given
social system. This is particularly true when the
adopters must learn a new set of skills or
knowledge (cognitive) elements. Trialability
the degree to which an innovation may be
experimented with on a limited basis. The concept
of Try it, youll like it. And if you dont,
bring it back for a full refund is very powerful
in getting people to try new things. The more an
innovation is made available to try without risk
or penalty, the more likely it will be adopted.
The ability to bring it back reduces the
adopters uncertainty about whether s/he is going
to get stuck with something they dont like,
cant use, or dont want.
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Innovation characteristics
Observability the degree to which the results
of an innovation are visible to others. The
easier it is for people to see the results of an
innovation, the more likely they are to adopt it.
If they see it, theyll ask the innovator about
it and, by getting information, reduce the
uncertainty of its potential use/adoption.
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Innovator characteristics

• Many new innovations have actually been around
  for a long time but have been known by only a few
  individuals or a small group.
• Before an innovation takes off and is widely
  adopted, a critical mass of adopters (1025)
  must be using the innovation.
• An aspect of innovation research studies the
  difference between early and late adopters.

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Innovator characteristics

• Innovativeness is the degree to which an
  individual is earlier or later in adopting an
  innovation relative to other members of the
  system. Rogers categorised adopters into five
  groups
• Innovators 2.5
• Early adopters 13.5
• Early majority 34
• Late majority 34
• Laggards 16.

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Innovator characteristics
Innovators are eager to try new ideas. They are
generally are able to cope with uncertainty. They
may or may not be respected by peers. Early
adopters are successful and respected by their
peers. They often fill the role of opinion
leaders and change agents. Early majority think
carefully before adopting a new idea, but are
usually ahead of the majority. Late majority are
cautious about innovations and may only adopt
them in response to economic reasons or peer
pressure. Laggards are traditionalists who
strongly resist innovation. Laggards are often
quite isolated in their peer group
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Organisation characteristics

• Rogers discussed a number of organisation
  characteristics that he believed influenced the
  rate and success of the diffusion of an
  innovation.

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Organisation characteristics
Characteristic Description Relationship to innovativeness
Centralisation Hierarchical in power/ control Tend to be less accepting on new ideas
Complexity Staff exhibit a high level of knowledge and expertise Tend to be more innovative but may have difficulty in reaching consensus
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Organisation characteristics
Characteristic Description Relationship to innovativeness
Formalisation The degree to which staff follow rules and procedures Less innovative but regulation improves implementation
Inter- connectedness The degree to which social systems are linked by interpersonal networks Strong networksinnovation easier to introduce
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Organisation characteristics
Characteristic Description Relationship to innovativeness
Organisational slack Degree and availability of uncommitted resources The more the better for implementation
Size Number of staff size of budget Generally the more the better
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Summary issues and theory in diffusion of
innovation
Once the innovation has been introduced, time and
timing become critical factors in the overall
rate and degree of innovation adoption. For most
innovations, the rate of adoption is relatively
slow until a critical mass of adopters has
accumulated approximately 1025 of the total
number of potential adopters. Once critical mass
has been achieved, then the diffusion process
rolls out rather rapidly, peaking at somewhere
around 8085 of the members. From there, the
rate flattens out and sometimes fails. Dependent
on the technology, it may be weeks, months or
years before the cycle repeats itself. Not all
innovations are adopted at the same rate within
any given system or group.
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References

• Everett Rogers
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everett_Rogers
• Rogers, E. (1995). Diffusion of Innovations (4th
  edn). The Free Press. New York