Proceedings of the 3rd European Conference on Intellectual Capital

Bongani Ngwenya
argument, <strong>the</strong> researchers mapped decision dimensions (economic versus social) to issue
interpretation (opportunities versus threats) to produce a two-by-two matrix useful for understanding
adoption motivations. Figure 1, below combines <strong>the</strong>se elements to present potential adoption
motivations in a simple diagram. Early adopters` motivations appear in <strong>the</strong> left column; this side <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
matrix corresponds to an opportunity view associated with achieving gains. Later adopters`
motivations appear in <strong>the</strong> right column; this side corresponds to a threat view associated with
preventing losses.
Motivations predicted
By two-stage model
(Tolbert & Zucker, 1983)
Issue Interpretation
Opportunity Threat
Figure 1: Motivations for adopting innovation
The conventional diffusion model suggests that early adopters are motivated by efficiency gains
(Palmer & Biggart, 2002; Tolbert & Zucker, 1983). This logic for adoption is captured in <strong>the</strong> top-left cell
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> motivation-issue interpretation matrix in Figure 1 above: adopting organizations are motivated
by achieving economic gains (creativity) and social gains (development). At this point <strong>of</strong> diffusion
process, adopting <strong>the</strong> new practice presents an opportunity ra<strong>the</strong>r than a threat, because it allows an
organization to achieve a performance advantage relative to competitors, since only few organizations
have as yet adopted <strong>the</strong> practice. However, connecting this part <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> conventional diffusion model
with <strong>the</strong>ories <strong>of</strong> issue interpretation requires suggested hypo<strong>the</strong>ses, which is not <strong>the</strong> focus <strong>of</strong> this
paper at this stage.
5. Discussion
Decision
Logic
Technical
Efficacy
Social
Legitimacy
Economic Gains
(Creativity)
Social Gains
(Development)
Early
adopters
Economic Losses
Social Losses
Late
adopters
This paper <strong>of</strong>fers a look at combining rational and social accounts <strong>of</strong> practice diffusion by asking
whe<strong>the</strong>r a concern with avoiding social losses necessarily precludes a concern with avoiding
economic losses, and wanting to look good does not preclude also wanting to do better. This paper
suggests that both early adopters and late adopters respond to framing and interpreting adoption
decision situations as opportunities versus threats. For instance, if <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>orization <strong>of</strong> strategic
innovation and knowledge management as <strong>of</strong>fering performance benefits <strong>of</strong> greater creativity
(economic gain) and development (social gain) appears compelling to adopting organizations
throughout a diffusion process, <strong>the</strong>n one would not expect to see differences between early and later
adopters in terms <strong>of</strong> economic gains as a motive for adoption. This interpretivist study also found that
motivations for strategic innovation and knowledge management to appear legitimate coexist with
motivations to realize organizational creativity and development. These findings prompt rethinking <strong>of</strong>
<strong>the</strong> classic institutional, framing and diffusion model, to suggest strategic innovation and knowledge
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