What if you had an idea...that you thought should be shared with the rest of the world around you? Something that you thought was worthy of passing on to the surrounding social system. You are one of a billion fish in a sea, how would the waters remain fresh, and the depths stay exciting if you nor the rest of the fish shared your ideas? Our world needs people to encourage others to share their ideas. This topic was examined, and turned into a theory called the Diffusion of Innovation theory. Let me elaborate:
Diffusion: to spread out or become transmitted especially by contact 1
Innovation: 1 : the introduction of something new
2 : a new idea, method, or device 2
Therefore, according to Everett Rogers, combining these terms creates the definition of the Diffusion of Innovation theory: the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social system 3
In my eyes, this definition means the process in which an idea is passed through a certain type of media, over time reaching the members of a social system. Following the research I did on the Diffusion of Innovation, I immediately thought of my personal favourite movie; Pay it Forward. The film is about an project assigned to a seventh grade Social Studies class about saving the world. One student in particular; Trevor McKinney, decides to take the project to an extreme, and perfectly exemplifies the Diffusion of Innovation theory. The following clip visualizes his idea:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cgq8nDBcufo&feature=related
(www.youtube.com)
Trevor is encouraged by his teacher to share his idea, and put it into action. His idea is passed to the social system around him over a period of time and is rejected, accepted and questioned. However, the point is that he shared the idea. It is possible for one idea to become popular, and then spread as far as the whole world. Scott McCloud states in his Understanding Comics that “in the last century or two, as Western cultural influences swept the east, so too have Eastern and African ideas of fragmentation and rhythm swept the west” 4. Therefore, trends originate from ideas, which are distributed without limits.
In my everyday media practices, the Diffusion of Innovation theory is probably applied more than I am even aware of. As a student, I am consuming ideas almost constantly. For example, my professors introduce projects and assignments that force me to come up with ideas that I could quite possibly share with the social system around me someday. Outside of class, during a session in front of the television or computer, anything that I see can spark an idea in my head.
Go ahead, share your ideas. Lets keep this world fresh.
1 "diffuse." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2008.
Merriam-Webster Online. 7 October 2008
<http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diffuse>
2 "innovation." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2008.
Merriam-Webster Online. 7 October 2008
<http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/innovation>
3Rogers, Everett. "Diffusion of Innovations." 2005. 4 Oct. 2008 <http://www.stanford.edu/class/symbsys205/diffusion%20of%20innovations.htm>.
4McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics. HarperCollins. 82-82.
No comments:
Post a Comment