Table 1 Characteristics of Rogers’ five categories of innovation adopters. Adopted from Humbert [9], Porter and Graham [10], Porter, Graham, Spring and Welch [12], Rogers [13]
Category | Characteristics |
|---|---|
Innovators | The first 2.5% of individuals to adopt an innovation / technology They have substantial technical expertise and self-learn new technologies They are always ready to adopt a new technology for their day-to-day work |
Early adopters | The 13.5% of individuals who adopt after the innovators They have good technical expertise and explore new technologies They adopt new technologies with more discretion than innovators They serve as examples and opinion leaders among other potential adopters |
Early majority | The 34% of individuals who adopt after the early adopters They are fairly comfortable with technology They need incentives, compelling evidence of efficiency and recommendation from opinion leaders to adopt new innovations |
Late majority | The 34% of individuals who adopt after the early majority They are less comfortable with technology compared to the early majority They only adopt a new technology under peer pressure or necessity They require suitable technical support for adopt new innovations |
Laggards | The last 16% of individuals who adopt an innovation (if ever) They resist adopting to new innovations even under peer pressure or necessity They tend to be disconnected from the social network of their system |