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ELEMENTS OF DIFFUSION
Getting a new idea adopted , even when it has obvious advantages , is often very difficult.Many innovations require a lenghty period , often of many years , from the time they become available to the time they are widely adopted. Therefore , a common problem for many individuals and organizations is how to speed up the rate of diffusion of an innovation. The diffusion of innovations is a social process , as well as a technical matter.
Diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social system. It is a special type of communication , in that the messages are concerned with new ideas.This newness of the idea in the message content gives diffusion its special character. The newness means that some degree of uncertainty is involved in diffusion.
A communication channel is the means by which messages get from one individual to another.Mass media channels are more effective in creating knowledge of innovations, whereas interpersonal channels are more effective in forming and changing attitudes towards a new idea, and thus in influencing the decision to adopt or reject a new idea.
Diffusion is a kind of social change, defined as the process by which alteration occurs in the structure and function of a social system. When new ideas are invented , diffused , and re-adopted or rejected , leading to certain consequences , social change occurs. Of course , such change can happen in other ways , too , for example, through a political revolution , through a natural event like a drought or an earthquake , or by means of a government regulation. The social and communication structure of a system facilitates or impedes the diffusion of innovations in the system.The characteristics of an innovation , as perceived by the members of a social system , determine its rate of adoption .
A final way in which a social system influences diffusion is consequences, the changes that occur to an individual or to a social system as a result of the adoption or rejection of an innovation.
THE INNOVATION-DECISION PROCESS
A Model of the Innovation-Decision Process
Diffusion scholars have long recognized that an individual’s decision about an innovation is not an instantenous act. Rather , it is a process that occurs over time , consisting of a series of actions and decisions. What is the nature of these sequential stages in the process of innovation decision making?
1.Knowledge occurs when an individual (or other decision-making unit) is exposed to an innovation’s existence and gains some understanding of how it functions.
2.Persuasion occurs when an individual (or some other decision-making unit) forms a favourable or unfavourable attitude toward the innovation.
3.Decision occurs when an individual (or other decision-making unit) engages in activities that lead to a choice to adopt or reject the innovation.
4.Implementation occurs when an individual (or other decision-making unit) puts an innovation into use.
5.Confirmation occurs when an individual (some other decision-making unit ) seeks reinforcement of an innovation-decision already made , or reverses a previous decision to adopt or reject the innovation if exposed to conflicting messages about the innovation.
Rogers, E. (1995). Diffusion of Innovations
Educational Technology 
