User:Cstorm44/Critical Mass(sociodynamics)

Critical mass is a sociodynamic term to describe the existence of a sufficient amount of adopters of an innovation in a social system such that the rate of adoption becomes self-sustaining and creates further growth. It is an aspect of the theory of Diffusion of Innovations, written extensively on by Everett Rogers in his book, "Diffusion of Innovations". Social factors influencing critical mass may involve the size, interrelatedness and level of communication in a society or one of its subcultures. Another is social stigma, or the possibility of public advocacy due to such a factor. Critical mass may be closer to majority consensus in political circles, where the most effective position is more often that held by the majority of people in society. In this sense, small changes in public consensus can bring about swift changes in political consensus, due to the majority-dependent effectiveness of certain ideas as tools of political debate.

Critical mass is a concept used in a variety of contexts, including physics, group dynamics, politics, public opinion, and technology.

Logic of Collective Action and Common Good

Critical mass and the theories behind it help us to understand aspects of humans as they act and interact in a larger social setting. Certain theories, such as Mancur Olson's Logic of Collective Action or Garrett Hardin's Tragedy of the Commons work to help us understand why humans do or adopt certain things which are beneficial to them, or, more importantly, why they do not. Much of this reasoning has to do with individual interests trumping that which is best for the collective whole, which may not be obvious at the time.

Oliver, Marwell, and Teixeira tackle this subject in relation to critical theory in an 1985 article published in the American Journal of Sociology. In their essay, they define that action in service of a public good as "collective action". "Collective Action" is beneficial to all, regardless of individual contribution. By their definition, then, "critical mass" is the small segment of a societal system that does the work or action required to achieve the common good. The "Production Function" is the correlation between resources, or what individuals give in an effort to achieve public good, and the achievement of that good. Such function can be decelerating, where there is less utility per unit of resource, and in such a case, resource can taper off. On the other hand, the function can be accelerating, where the more resources that are used the bigger the payback. "Heterogeneity" is also important to the achievement of a common good. Variations (heterogeneity) in the value individuals put on a common good or the effort and resources people give is beneficial, because if certain people stand to gain more, they are willing to give or pay more.

Interactive Media

While critical mass can be applied to many different aspects of sociodynamics, it becomes increasingly applicable to innovations in interactive media such as the telephone, fax, or email. With other non-interactive innovations, the dependence on other users was generally sequential, meaning that the early adopters influenced the later adopters to use the innovation. However, with interactive media, the interdependence was reciprocal, meaning both users influenced each other. This is due to the fact that interactive media have high network externality, where in the value and utility of a good or service increases the more users it has. Thus, he increase of adopters and quickness to reach critical mass can therefore be faster and more intense with interactive media, as can the rate at which previous users discontinue their use. The more people that use it, the more beneficial it will be, thus creating a type of snowball effect and conversely, if users begin to stop using the innovation, the innovation loses utility, thus pushing more users to discontinue their use.

Markus essay

In M. Lynn Markus' essay in Communication Research entitled "Toward a 'Critical Mass' Theory of Interactive Media", several propositions are made that try to predict under what circumstances interactive media is most likely to achieve critical mass and reach universal access, a "common good" using Oliver, et al.'s terminology. One proposition states that such media's existence is all or nothing, where in if universal access is not achieved, then, eventually, use will discontinue. Another propositions suggest that a media's ease of use and inexpensiveness, as well as it utilization of an "active notification capability" will help it achieve universal access. The third proposition states that the heterogeneity, as discussed by Oliver, et al. is beneficial, especially if users are dispersed over a larger area, thus necessitating interactivity via media. Fourth, it is very helpful to have highly sought-after individuals to act as early adopters, as their use acts as incentive for later users. Finally, Markus posits that interventions, both monetarily and otherwise, by governments, businesses, or groups of individuals will help a media reach it's critical mass and achieve universal access.

Fax Machine example

An example put forth by Rogers in Diffusion of Innovations was that of the fax machine, which had been around for almost 150 years before it became popular and widely used. It had existed in various forms and for various uses, but with more advancements in the technology of faxes, including the use of already in place phone lines to transmit information, coupled with falling prices in both machines and cost per fax, the fax machine reached a critical mass in 1987, when "Americans began to assume that 'everybody else' had a fax machine".

See also

• Bandwagon effect
• Network effect
• One-third hypothesis
• Positive feedback
• Tipping point (sociology)
• Tragedy of the Commons
• Viral phenomenon

References

• Philip Ball: Critical Mass: How One Thing Leads to Another, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, ISBN 0374530416
• Everett Rogers: Diffusion of Innovations, Free Press
• M. Lynne Markus: Toward a 'Critical Mass' Theory of Interactive Media: Universal Access, Interdependence and Diffusion, Communication Research, 1987, 14:491
• Mancur Olson: The Logic of Collective Action, Harvard University Press, 1971