Change Agent Innovativeness: Community Economic Development Directors' Attitudes toward Telecommunications

Abstract

This study examines the innovativeness of Iowa community economic development director change agents. Change agents such as economic development directors are employed by communities because of their expertise and assumed enthusiasm for innovation and change. Telecommunications innovations are being widely promoted in helping America's rural communities overcome some factors that historically have handicapped small and remote communities maintain economic viability. But achieving the utility of these technologies in local development is dependent upon leadership from the economic development directors to help communities acquire, implement, and fully exploit them. We hypothesize that change agents will be more innovative in using telecommunications technologies with greater exposure to information about the technologies. Findings reveal significant variation in the innovativeness of these change agents and that recent information and experience with the technologies are particularly important in their use by the economic development directors.