Using values to measure attitudes toward discontinuous innovation

Discontinuous innovations pose special challenges to attitude measurement. The authors propose a solution which uses Rokeach's (1968) value terms to update Rosenberg's (1956) formulation. This values‐based approach solves problems associated with more conventional procedures based on beliefs or adjective checklists. A measure constructed according to this model was included in a mail questionnaire completed by 950 owners of personal computers. Analyses supportive of the validity of the values‐based attitude measure are reported, and an example is given of the practical utility of the technique. The values‐based approach is recommended when a general measure of attitude toward a highly involving product category is desired.