Can state government actions affect innovation and its diffusion?: An extended communication model and empirical test

Abstract

This article looks at how a state government's roles as both a sponsor and a diffuser of an innovation affect the adoption-diffusion process. The article first develops a theoretical framework by extending the basic communication model of diffusion to include state government's role in state government-sponsored innovation and its diffusion. This model also incorporates organizational and innovation factors. Next an empirical test of the extended communication model is conducted using data on innovations sponsored by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). The results suggest that the degree of state government involvement in innovation development is positively associated with diffusion. The results also indicate that state government's diffusion-facilitating efforts such as providing information about innovations, financial support during development, and procedural facilitation of development are positively related to industry's adoption decision for new innovation.