Diffusion of Innovation Theory

Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) Theory, developed by E.M. Rogers in 1962, is one of

the oldest social science theories. It originated in communication to explain how, over
time, an idea or product gains momentum and diffuses (or spreads) through a
specific population or social system. The end result of this diffusion is that people, as
part of a social system, adopt a new idea, behavior, or product. Adoption means that
a person does something differently than what they had previously (i.e., purchase or
use a new product, acquire and perform a new behavior, etc.). The key to adoption is
that the person must perceive the idea, behavior, or product as new or innovative. It
is through this that diffusion is possible.
Adoption of a new idea, behavior, or product (i.e., "innovation") does not happen
simultaneously in a social system; rather it is a process whereby some people are
more apt to adopt the innovation than others. Researchers have found that people
who adopt an innovation early have different characteristics than people who adopt
an innovation later. When promoting an innovation to a target population, it is
important to understand the characteristics of the target population that will help or
hinder adoption of the innovation. There are five established adopter categories,
and while the majority of the general population tends to fall in the middle categories,
it is still necessary to understand the characteristics of the target population. When
promoting an innovation, there are different strategies used to appeal to the different
adopter categories.
1. Innovators - These are people who want to be the first to try the innovation.
They are venturesome and interested in new ideas. These people are very
willing to take risks, and are often the first to develop new ideas. Very little, if
anything, needs to be done to appeal to this population.
2. Early Adopters - These are people who represent opinion leaders. They enjoy
leadership roles, and embrace change opportunities. They are already aware
of the need to change and so are very comfortable adopting new ideas.
Strategies to appeal to this population include how-to manuals and
information sheets on implementation. They do not need information to
convince them to change.
3. Early Majority - These people are rarely leaders, but they do adopt new ideas
before the average person. That said, they typically need to see evidence that
the innovation works before they are willing to adopt it. Strategies to appeal to
this population include success stories and evidence of the innovation's
effectiveness.
4. Late Majority - These people are skeptical of change, and will only adopt an
innovation after it has been tried by the majority. Strategies to appeal to this
population include information on how many other people have tried the
innovation and have adopted it successfully.

5. Laggards - These people are bound by tradition and very conservative. They
are very skeptical of change and are the hardest group to bring on board.
Strategies to appeal to this population include statistics, fear appeals, and
pressure from people in the other adopter groups.

The stages by which a person adopts an innovation, and whereby diffusion is

accomplished, include awareness of the need for an innovation, decision to adopt (or
reject) the innovation, initial use of the innovation to test it, and continued use of the
innovation. There are five main factors that influence adoption of an innovation,
and each of these factors is at play to a different extent in the five adopter categories.
1. Relative Advantage - The degree to which an innovation is seen as better
than the idea, program, or product it replaces.
2. Compatibility - How consistent the innovation is with the values, experiences,
and needs of the potential adopters.
3. Complexity - How difficult the innovation is to understand and/or use.
4. Triability - The extent to which the innovation can be tested or experimented
with before a commitment to adopt is made.
5. Observability - The extent to which the innovation provides tangible results.

Limitations of Diffusion of Innovation Theory

There are several limitations of Diffusion of Innovation Theory, which include the
following:

Much of the evidence for this theory, including the adopter categories, did not
originate in public health and it was not developed to explicitly apply to
adoption of new behaviors or health innovations.
It does not foster a participatory approach to adoption of a public health
program.

It works better with adoption of behaviors rather than cessation or prevention

of behaviors.
It doesn't take into account an individual's resources or social support to
adopt the new behavior (or innovation).

This theory has been used successfully in many fields including communication,
agriculture, public health, criminal justice, social work, and marketing. In public
health, Diffusion of Innovation Theory is used to accelerate the adoption of important
public health programs that typically aim to change the behavior of a social system.
For example, an intervention to address a public health problem is developed, and
the intervention is promoted to people in a social system with the goal of adoption
(based on Diffusion of Innovation Theory). The most successful adoption of a public
health program results from understanding the target population and the factors
influencing their rate of adoption.
http://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/MPH-Modules/SB/SB721-Models/SB721-Models4.html

Ellsworth (2000) commented that Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations (1995) is

an excellent general practitioner's guide. Rogers' framework provide "a
standard classification scheme for describing the perceived attributes on
innovations in universal terms" (Rogers, 1995). Research in educational
change has applied and explored Rogers' model to different contexts.
Rogers' model studies diffusion from a change communication framework to
examine the effects of all the components involved in the communication
process on the rate of adoption. Rogers (1996) identified the differences
both in people and in the innovation. The model provides the guidelines for
the change agents about what attributes that they can build into the
innovation to facilitate its acceptance by the intended adopter. Rogers also
identified the sequence of change agent roles:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

To develop a need for change.

To establish an information-exchange relationship.
To diagnose problems.
To create an intent in the client to change.
To translate an intent to action.
To stabilize adoption and prevent discontinuance.
To achieve a terminal relationship

How is diffusion defined in Rogers' Model?

Diffusion is a process by which an innovation is communicated through
certain channels over time among the members of a social system.
The definition indicates that:

The adopters can be an individual, groups, or organization at different

levels of social system.
The target is innovation
The process is communication
The means is communication channels
The context of innovation is a social system
It is a change over time.

How can we categorize different types of adopter?

Innovators (risk takers)

Early adopters (hedgers)
Early majority (waiters)
Late majority (skeptics)
Late adopters (slowpokes)

What are the factors affecting the rate of adoption of an innovation?

According to Rogers (1995), there are five major factors affecting the rate of
adoption:
1. Perceived Attributes of Innovation
An innovation is a idea, practice or object that is perceived as new by
an individual or other unit of adoption. How the adopter perceived
characteristics of the innovation has impacts on the process of
adoption.

Relative advantage: the degree to which an innovation is perceived as

better than the idea it supersedes. The underlying principle is that the
greater the perceived relative advantage of an innovation, the more
raid its rate of adoption
Compatibility: the degree to which an innovation is perceived as
being consistent with the existing values, past experiences, and needs
of potential adopters
Complexity: the degree to which an innovation is perceived as
difficult to understand and use
Trialability: the degree to which an innovation may be experimented
with on a limited basis. If an innovation is trialable, it results in less
uncertainty for adoption

Observability: the degree to which the results of an innovation are

visible to others. The easier it is for individuals to see the results of an
innovation, the more likely they are to adopt.

2. Type of Innovation-Decision

Optional: an individual flexibility

Collective: a balance between maximum efficiency and freedom
Authority: it yields the high rate of adoption, but produces high
resistance.

3. Communication Channels

Mass Media
Interpersonal

4. Nature of the Social System

A social system is defined as a set of interrelated units that are
engaged in joint problem solving to accomplish a common goal. The
members or units of a social system may be individuals, informal
groups, organizations, and or subsystems. All members cooperate at
least to the extent of seeking to solve a common problem in order to
reach a mutual goal: Sharing of a common objective binds the system
together. The social structure affects the innovation's diffusion in
several ways:

Social structure and communication structure: patterned arrangements

of the units in a system
System norms: norms are established behavior patterns for the
members of a social system
Roles of opinion leaders and change agents: opinion leadership is the
degree to which an individual is able to influence other individual's
attitudes or overt behavior informally in a desired way with relative
frequency
Types of innovation decisions: optional innovation-decision,
collective innovation -decision, authority innovation-decision;
contingent innovation-decision
The consequences of innovation: desirable vs. undesirable, direct vs.
indirect, anticipated vs. unanticipated

5. Extent of Change Agent's Promotion

Siegel (1999) listed four additional factors of Rogers' theory:

6. Pro-innovation Bias: three assumptions about innovation:

It should be diffused and adopted by all members of a social system

It should be diffused more rapidly
It should be neither reinvented nor rejected

7. Reinvention: people use innovations in ways not originally intended

8. Individual characteristics of adopters
What is innovation-decision process for individual or other decision
making unit?

Knowledge: it occurs when an individual is exposed to the

innovation's existence and gains some understanding of how it
functions
Persuasion: it occurs when an individual forms a favorable or
unfavorable attitude toward the innovation
Decision: it occurs when an individual engages in activities that lead
to a choice to adopt or reject the innovation
Implementation: it occurs when an individual puts an innovation into
use
Confirmation: it occurs when an individual seeks reinforcement of an
innovation decision or reverse the previous decision due to the
conflict

What are the contributions of Rogers' Model?

Ellsworth (2000) pointed out the most critical benefits of Rogers' model is
the innovation attributes. He said:
"Practitioners are likely to find this perspective of the greatest use if they are
engaged in the actual development of the innovation or if they are deciding
whether (or how) to adapt the innovation to meet local requirements
Rogers' framework can be useful in determining how it is to be presented to
its intended adopters." (p.40)
Rogers' model has identified the critical components in the change system
and their characteristics. The model is relatively systematic because the
consequence of the change is confined with a predetermined "innovation", a
predetermined goal. The interrelationship and dynamic exchange between
the components in the change system is not expected to contribute to the
continuous shaping of the vision, but to be controlled to adopt a desirable
idea, object, or program.

References:
Ellsworth, J. B. (2000). Surviving changes: A survey of Educational change
models. Syracuse, NY: ERIC Clearinghouse.
Rogers, E. (1995). Diffusion of Innovations. (4th ed.). New York, NY: The
Free Press.
http://www.personal.psu.edu/wxh139/Rogers.htm