“I remember interviewing an Iowa farmer during my Ph. D. dissertation research at Iowa State University in 1954. I inquired about his adoption of 2,4-D weed spray. The farmer described in some detail the particular and unusual ways in which he used the weed spray on his
2
farm: At the end of his lengthy remarks, I simply checked “adopter” in my interview questionnaire.” Everett Rogers (2003, p. 17) As illustrated by this anecdote from Everett Rogers’ early fieldwork, empirical diffusion research has always had a somewhat limited view on adopters and what they do with innova- tions. The present chapter responds to this shortcoming on several levels: by describing how mainstream diffusion theory, from its earliest days, has considered adoption from a binary perspective; by explaining the methodological and theoretical reasons for this approach; by showing how the phenomenon of ReInvention has always challenged this view, even more so today with the increasing complexity of innovations; and finally by outlining approaches that may lead to a new and broader perspective on what users do with innovations in the course of the diffusion process.