Vive la difference!

In the 1940's, two sociologists, Bryce Ryan and Neal Gross published a seminal study of the adoption of hybrid seed among Iowa farmers.

Based on this study, in the 1960's Everett Rogers proposed a five-way classification: Innovators, Early Adopters, Early Majority, Late Majority and Laggards.

The categories are based on the normal distribution (bell-curve) and each category is one standard deviation wide, except for 'laggards' which is 2 standard deviations wide.

Innovators represent the first 2.5% of the population, Early Adopters the next 13.5%, Early Majority the next 34%, Late Majority the next 34% and Laggards, the remaining 16%.

In the 1940's report, the first farmers to adopt (the innovators) were more cosmopolitan (traveling more frequently to the big city, Des Moines) and of higher socioeconomic status than later adopters. One of the most important characteristics of the innovators is that they require a shorter adoption period than any other category.

Other traits of the innovator type:

(1) venturesome, daring,
(2) substantial financial resources to absorb possible loss from an unprofitable innovation.
(3) can understand and apply complex technical knowledge, and
(4) can cope with a high degree of uncertainty about an innovation.