The diffusion of innovations in the building industry

The purpose of this dissertation is twofold. Firstly, to investigate whether the E.M. Rogers diffusion of innovations paradigm can be applied to the building industry in the United Kingdom. Secondly, to look at the implications of this model in relation to the specification of building product innovations by specifiers working in architect's offices. A critical evaluation of the E. M. Rogers diffusion paradigm serves as a basis for the development of a theoretical model which is applicable to the building industry, based on both diffusion literature and architectural literature. The thesis focuses on the individual specifier's innovation-decision process which provides a theoretical extension of the diffusion model into the building industry. Three major hypotheses are considered. It is hypothesized that information entering the architect's office is controlled by a gatekeeper, thus controlling the volume of information transmitted from the building product manufacturer to the potential specifier. Secondly, it is hypothesized that the 'palette of favourite products', identified in earlier research, may act as a barrier to the adoption of building product innovations. Thirdly, it is hypothesized that the relationship between the adoption of building product innovations in preference to those previously used is dependent upon a number of social system variables and the time available to investigate an alternative. Support for the theoretical model was obtained from a postal questionnaire, whilst a number of case studies, which ran from April 1992 to November 1995 in an architect's office, provide illustrations of some of the theoretical issues.