As especificidades do processo de difusão de uma inovação social: da propagação inicial à ressignificação

Abstract

This thesis analyzed the process of diffusion and the adoption of social innovation generated in a non-profit organization that has income-generating activities. The name of the Sicredi System program is: A União Faz a Vida (Unity is Life). The research method used was a single case study with analysis units in seven cities in the state of Rio Grande do Sul: Agudo, Arroio do Tigre, Cerro Branco, Candelária, Sobradinho, Paraíso do Sol and Vale do Sol). Four data-collection techniques were employed: documentation, in-depth interviews with 15 people, direct observation and a focus group with 13 participants. The basic social innovation suppositions developed by Katz, Levin and Hamilton in1963, by Katz in1999 and by Rogers from 1962 to 2003 were jointly used for the analysis of the diffusion process of social innovations. The main findings identify some specific points in the diffusion process of social innovation: the lack of separation between the processes of diffusion and adoption since they take place simultaneously; the need for collaboration among the different players for innovation to be accepted; and the presence of strong political and cultural elements to promote the adoption or the rejection of social innovation.