Adoption Threshold Level – understanding complexity of change

The Adoption Threshold Level* describes a groups’ inclination to adopt a new behaviour. Certain groups will have a low adoption threshold for a specific change, are inclined to make the change and will adopt directly and in other groups the resistance is higher and people won't change until they see the new behaviour from most people around them.

To determine the Adoption Threshold Level, you need to capture peoples’ inclination towards the new behaviours in relation to their preferences for the current.

On a group level, the threshold value represents how many persons need to adopt the behaviour before organic adoption takes place. It measures how difficult the change is. In the example above, 6 out of 10 needs to adopt before organic adoption takes place.

Curious of what the Adoption Threshold is for your specific group and change? Get in touch.

[*] Centola, Damon. How Behavior Spreads (Princeton Analytical Sociology). Princeton University Press.