How do trends start?
We are constantly changing how we view the world as well as picking up on new trends as the years go by. What used to be popular a few years ago would now be criticized with new opinions due to how different the world is now compared to how it was in the past. However, how do all of these trends begin? There are many opinions and ideas that can be found on the internet, but it seems that only a few can reach the surface of popularity where the whole world would get to hear or read about them. Is there a common trait from all the trends that have ever existed so that we can understand how and why they began.
According to http://www.henrikvejlgaard.com/?id=161, for a trend to begin, it must be accepted by a distinct group of people which include celebrities, artists, young people, designers, wealthy people, and gay men. Once it gets accepted by these groups of people, also known as trendsetters, it must then go into the process of getting picked up by larger groups of people through the use of social media, magazines, the internet, etc. Depending on what the trend is, most can typically last around a few years before people’s taste or style change.
In class, we have learned about Network Diffusions and how even one node can cause a difference in a graph. This node can represent the trendsetter that can potentially get a large percentage of the world population to either join along or even just hear about this new idea.