Perceived critical mass and the adoption of a communication technology

Abstract

Computer-based communication technologies are increasingly important to personal and organizational communication. One important factor related to the adoption and diffusion of communication innovations is critical mass. Critical mass influences the adoption and diffusion of interactive communication innovations, both through network externalities and through sustainability of the innovation. Unfortunately, critical mass is difficult to measure and is typically only demonstrable after the critical mass point has been reached. Potential adopters' perceptions of critical mass also may be important to adoption decisions. In this paper, we extend this thinking using a synthesis of the Theory of Reasoned Action and Diffusion of Innovation theory by developing a research model. The model is empirically tested using survey data that are analyzed using partial least squares. The focal innovation is instant messaging. Results indicate that perceived critical mass influences use intentions directly and through perceptions of the characteristics of the innovation. The perceived innovation characteristics impact attitude toward use, which in turn impacts use intentions. The model predicts a sizable and significant portion of both attitudes and use intentions. Further, perceived critical mass is able to explain a significant portion of the variance in each perceived innovation characteristic. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Music for free? How free ad-funded downloads affect consumer choice

“…Note that these variables do not pertain to specific download stores but rather to the concept of obtaining music from commercial download stores. We extend these variables via constructs that pertain to the perceived risk of adopting a download service, the perceived critical mass (Van Slyke et al 2007), and consumers' price sensitivity (Ofir 2004). (3) We control for music usage habits by asking respondents to indicate, for example, how much time they spend on listening to music, their budget for music purchases, and how important they view the opportunity to permanently keep the tracks.…”

Personalityzation: UI Personalization, Theoretical Grounding in HCI and Design Research

“…In addition to the image, we also presented respondents with information about the number of previously reported ratings for the particular pet image presented to them (along the lines of UI design common on popular recommender systems such as Amazon or Netflix). Perceived critical mass is a subjective and context-specific concept Volume 7 Issue 2 (Lou, Lou, & Strong, 2000;Van Slyke et al, 2007), and, therefore, we set two levels of critical mass in the study, assigned randomly to participants: a high value of prior ratings (2,127) represented a high level of critical mass and a low value (26 ratings) represented a low level of critical mass.…”

“…This, of course, is not straightforward; yet, given our experimental design and the narrow focus of the design problem (only one UI feature at a time), the search for a theoretical basis is quite constrained, and our experience shows that the challenge of identifying a relevant kernel theory for a particular set of UI features is surmountable. Take, for example, our study in which we experimentally manipulated the UI indicator of the number of prior raters; in order to explain the effect of this UI design feature, we considered framing this manipulation in terms of "group size", but we eventually turned to the theory of critical mass (Lou et al, 2000;Van Slyke et al, 2007). We note that identifying relevant theoretical foundations for directing the design of non-UI components may be more challenging as the scope of the search is less constrained.…”

Rethinking determinants of ICT acceptance: Towards an integrated and comprehensive overview

“…In addition, this concept is also a central aspect in TAM ("perceived usefulness") (Davis, 1989) or in SCT ("outcome expectations") (Compeau, Higgins, & Huff, 1999). Most scholars relegate to Rogers" work in his conceptualization of "observability" in terms of "perceived result demonstrability", while some others distinguish the latter from "visibility" as the degree to which the innovation is visible to others in its own right (Van Slyke, Ilie, Lou, & Stafford, 2007). Others stress the importance of accounting for "perceived enjoyment" of using the innovation (the so-called "likeability" of ICT applications) and "reliability" as a dimension of perceived risk that is not covered by other determinants ("reliability" in this context refers to "performance risk").…”