Innovativeness (Technology)

What it measures

This scale measures the degree to which a consumer is an early adopter of new technological products relative to others, covering enjoyment of being first to own new tech, risk-taking, and willingness to replace working products. Jung et al. (2022) used the scale, originally developed in a series of studies by Bruner, Kumar, and Heppner (2007), in Study 1 with 266 undergraduate students at a large U.S. university.

Response format

Likert-type (number of response points not stated in source)

Scale items

• I am usually among the first to try new technological devices.
• When dealing with high-tech gadgets, I am usually one of the first in line to buy.
• I get a kick out of buying new high-tech items before most other people even know they exist.
• I am usually ahead of the average person when it comes to buying new high-tech products.
• I often try new technological devices before my friends and neighbors do.
• I get a thrill out of being first to purchase a high technology item.
• Although I might not be the first to own innovative high-tech devices, I usually get them before most people.
• It is cool to be the first to own new high-tech products.
• I want to own the newest technological products.
• I consider myself to be a risk taker when it comes to new high-tech products.
• Being the first to buy new technological devices is very important to me.
• I consider myself to be a little more innovative than the average person when it comes to trying out new technological devices and services.
• I am willing to buy new high-tech products even if they replace things I own that still work well.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Not adapted — used verbatim from the original source; the items are word-for-word identical to the source. Alpha was .93 (Jung, personal correspondence 2024); validity was not discussed by Jung et al. (2022). This is a seminal, highly cited instrument developed by Bruner, Kumar, and Heppner (2007) as the Technology Adoption Scale (TAS) through a qualitative phase plus three quantitative studies (total N > 3,800), and the focal paper reports its own reliability data from its own administration, so it is included here despite being a verbatim reuse. In its original development, the 13-item TAS had alphas of .96, .96, and .97 in Studies 1-3 respectively, an AVE of .66, and was supported for unidimensionality plus content, convergent, discriminant, nomological, concurrent, and known-groups validity.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Jung, Wonsuk, Joann Peck, Mauricio Palmeira, and Kyeongheui Kim (2022), "An Unintended Consequence of Product Upgrades: How Upgrades Can Make Current Consumers Feel Left Behind," Journal of Marketing Research, 59 (5), 1019-1039.

Keywords