ENTR427 – Technological Innovations

Week 1 Assignment: Survey Methodology

Innovation Diffusion Theory uses scales designed to measure the predictive strength of

antecedents of innovation adoption. The following 3-step process should be used for the

construction of a self-administered questionnaire, or a researcher administered survey.

Step 1. Specify the innovation and define the constructs:

The focus is on the perception of using the innovation, rather than on the innovation itself since

the actual product(s) doesn’t exist. The following antecedents form the basis for the following

construct definitions:

1. Relative Advantage: the degree to which the innovation is perceived as being better

than its precursor

2. Compatibility: the degree to which the innovation is perceived as being consistent with

the existing values, needs, and past experiences of potential adopters

3. Complexity: the degree to which the innovation is perceived as being difficult to use

4. Trialability: the degree to which the innovation may be experimented with before

adoption

5. Observability: the degree to which the results of the innovation are observable to others.

(Rogers, E. 2005)

Step 2. Generate a sample of items:

Using Roger’s antecedent definitions above, develop a series of questions, 2 per construct 10 in

total, to assess a respondent’s attitude towards the adoption of the proposed innovation. (Rogers,

E. 2005)

Item format: 7-Point Likert scale

Level of measurement: ordinal, interval, categorical

Step 3. Collect data with survey instrument and analyze data using Excel.

Analyze Data:

Use descriptive statistics; e.g. mean, media, mode, to analyze the distribution of the data.