Discussion Questions

1. Be prepared to describe what is meant by "outrage factors" in public discourse about new technologies. Know which outrage factors are most important in influencing public opinion. [See: Risk Communication web site.]
2. Be prepared to discuss the meaning of the "diffusion effect." What is the sociological meaning of this effect? How does it relate to the concept of normative expectations? Why is this effect important for influencing the adoption of innovations? [See: Diffusion of Innovations, Part 1.]
3. Be prepared to discuss the methods of identifying opinion leaders. Know an advantage and disadvantage of each approach. [See: Diffusion of Innovations, Part 1.]
4. Rogers discusses strategies for reducing inequalities that occur from the adoption of new technologies and presents three scenarios for reducing gaps between "ups" and "downs" that sometimes are increased as the result of innovation adoption. Be prepared to discuss each of these scenarios and Rogers' proposed solutions to them. [See: Diffusion of Innovations, Part 2.]
5. Be prepared to discuss the key features of each stage of the innovation-decision process. Know the diffusion strategy that is most appropriate for each of the first three stages. [See: Diffusion of Innovations, Part 1.]
6. Be prepared to discuss: re-invention , the "strength-of-weak-ties" , and innovation characteristics. [See: Diffusion of Innovations, Part 1.]
7. Be prepared to discuss the contributions and criticisms of the diffusion of innovations model. [See: Diffusion of Innovations, Part 2.]

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