Explaining Variation in Adoption of Organizational Innovation: A Social Network Approach

Authors

Pooria Assadi, California State University, SacramentoFollow

Document Type

Article

Abstract

This article draws from the social network theory and examines how a social network approach can contribute to our understanding of the variation in the adoption of innovative, organization-wide information systems that can help businesses achieve sustainable competitive advantage. It highlights how the extant explanations for the adoption of information systems are limited in the way that they primarily assume organizations make innovation adoption decisions in isolation. It does so by building on growing research which recognizes that organizations are not isolated from one another; rather, they are interrelated through their inter-organizational networks which provide unique learning opportunities that are otherwise unavailable. In addition, this article showcases how the unique features of innovative information systems allow firms to form new ties based on the common characteristics and information processing capabilities within a network of organizations that would otherwise go untapped. Through highlighting network externalities, this article helps generate a more complete theory of information systems adoption and improve our understanding of the role of social networks in adoption of organizational innovation.

Recommended Citation

Assadi, Pooria (2024) "Explaining Variation in Adoption of Organizational Innovation: A Social Network Approach," Journal of International Technology and Information Management: Vol. 32: Iss. 1, Article 7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.58729/1941-6679.1550
Available at: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/jitim/vol32/iss1/7