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Diffusion theory explains how innovations spread across cultures. It identifies five stages of adoption: knowledge, persuasion, decision, implementation, and confirmation. Factors that influence adoption include ease of use, observable results, and compatibility with moral values. Adoption rates depend on factors such as community influence and reviews.
Diffusion theory, also known as diffusion theory of innovations, is a theory relating to the diffusion of innovation, ideas, and technology across one or more cultures. The theory has been extensively studied by sociologists, psychologists and anthropologists. Diffusion theory states that there are many qualities in different people that lead them to accept or not accept an innovation. There are also many qualities of innovations that can make people readily accept or resist them.
According to diffusion theory, there are five stages in the process of adopting an innovation. The first stage is knowledge, where an individual becomes aware of an innovation but has no information about it. Then there is persuasion, where the individual becomes actively interested in seeking innovation knowledge. In the third stage, the decision, the individual weighs the advantages and disadvantages of the innovation and decides whether to adopt it or not.
After the decision comes implementation, where the individual actually adopts and uses the innovation. Confirmation is the final stage. After adopting the innovation, the individual makes the final decision whether or not to continue using it based on their personal experience with it. These same stages apply, to varying degrees, to groups of people as well as individuals.
There are many factors in the innovations themselves that determine how likely people are to adopt them and how quickly they will adopt them. In general, if an innovation is better than any standard that preceded it, it will eventually be adapted. However, if the innovation goes against people’s moral values, they will be less likely to adapt it. The ability to try the innovation without committing right away also influences the likelihood that people adopt the innovation.
Ease of use is also an important factor in adopting innovations. No matter how good an innovation is, people will be reluctant to adopt it if it’s difficult to use and difficult to learn. Most important, however, are the observable results. When people start to see the good the innovation is doing for them and their neighbors, they will find it hard to resist the temptation to adopt it. These qualities of innovation are of utmost importance to diffusion theory.
Diffusion theory also deals with the speed at which innovations spread. Some people adopt the innovation immediately, while others hang on for a long time and continue to use older methods. The adoption rate depends on many factors. For example, if a well-respected member of a community adopts an innovation, it is likely that many more people will follow along. If a lot of people give an innovation bad reviews, people are likely to be slow to adopt it.
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