CATEGORIES OF ADOPTERS

Arpita SharmaArpita SharmaPh.D. Research ScholarPh.D. Research Scholar

Dept. of Agricultural CommunicationDept. of Agricultural CommunicationG. B. Pant University of Ag.& Tech. Pantnagar,G. B. Pant University of Ag.& Tech. Pantnagar,

[email protected]@gmail.com

CATEGORIES OF ADOPTERS

Diffusion:

Diffusion is a process by which innovation is communicated through certain channels overtime among the member of social System. It is a special type of communication.

Elements of DiffusionCategories of adopters

InnovationCertain channelsSocial systemOvertime

Innovators (venturesome) Early Adopters (respect) Early Majority (deliberate) Late Majority (skeptical) Laggards (traditional)

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Interest in new ideas leads them out of local circle of peer networks

Cosmopolite and activity may go beyond the community boundaries

Control of substantial financial resources Ability to understand and apply technical

knowledge Must cope with high degrees of uncertainty

More integrated part of local social system

Greatest degree of opinion leadership The person to check with Sought by change agents Respected by their peers Makes judicious innovation-decisions

Interact frequently with peers Seldom hold leadership opinion

positions Innovation-decision period is

longer Most numerous - one-third of the

members of the system

Adopt just after the average member of a system

Adoption because of economic necessity Also increasing pressures from peers Skeptical and cautious in their approach Peer pressure necessary Most of the uncertainty must be removed

Last in a system to adopt Many are near isolates in the social

network of their system Interact primarily with others who have

traditional values Suspicious of innovations and change

agents

Early adopters: aren’t different in age from later adopters have more years of formal education are more likely to be literate have higher social status have a greater degree of social mobility have larger units (e.g. farms, schools)

Early adopters: have greater empathy may be less dogmatic have a greater ability to deal

with abstractions have greater rationality have greater intelligence

Earlier adopters: more favorable attitude toward change are better able to cope with uncertainty more favorable attitude toward science are less fatalistic have higher aspirations

Earlier adopters: more social participation more interconnected through

interpersonal networks more cosmopolite more change agent contact greater exposure to mass

media

Earlier adopters: greater exposure to interpersonal

communications channels seek information about innovations more

actively have greater knowledge of innovations higher degree of opinion leadership