Why read Diffusion of Innovations?

Book cover of Diffusion of Innovations

Book description

Now in its fifth edition, Diffusion of Innovations is a classic work on the spread of new ideas.

In this renowned book, Everett M. Rogers, professor and chair of the Department of Communication & Journalism at the University of New Mexico, explains how new ideas spread via communication channels over…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked Diffusion of Innovations as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Stephen Wunker

Author

The world is full of great ideas that don’t catch on. Indoor plumbing, for example, took about 2,500 years to become popular. Others, like radio, catch fire seemingly overnight. Why? Rogers produced the seminal work on this topic, which has now gone through five editions of updates.

He sets out clear patterns of how innovations get taken up—or struggle to. He delves into many examples to prove his points, and he always makes the reader think. Before you focus on your wonderful idea, think about what will make the idea be accepted quickly by the marketplace. As Rogers shows, that…

From Stephen's list on The best books for passionate innovators.

Jonah Berger

Author

Decades ago, Everett Rogers wondered why some farmers adopted a type of corn seed while others didn’t. But once he studied that, he wondered whether similar factors might drive the adoption of all sorts of innovations, from new pharmaceutical drugs to the internet.

This book is a trove of useful insights into how ideas and concepts spread through society/culture. It covers the S curve of diffusion, innovators, and laggards, and a variety of other things.

From Jonah's list on The best books to make anything catch on.