20% of the U.S. Has Never Sent Email: Study

20% of the U.S. Has Never Sent Email: Study

Monday, May 19, 2008 - by Michael Santo
As hard as it may be to believe, according to a study by research firm Parks Associates, nearly 20% of the population of the United States is disconnected from the Internet and has never used email. In their annual phone survey of U.S. households, Parks Associates found 20 million households are without Internet access, approximately 18% of the U.S.

"Nearly one out of three household heads has never used a computer to create a document. These data underscore the significant digital divide between the connected majority and the homes in the unconnected minority that rarely, if ever, use a computer."

"Internet connections have slowly increased in U.S. households, but getting the disconnected minority online will continue to be difficult. Age and economics are important factors, but the heart of the challenge is deeper. Many people just don’t see a reason to use computers and do not associate technology with the needs and demands of their daily lives."

The survey was conducted among 1,088 households and has a margin of error of +/- 3%.
Via: Parks Associates | News Archive | Tags: Email, Mail, Study
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Comments

By SqUiD267 on May 18, 2008

 Thats really hard to believe but then again prices for everythign is going through the roof, soI don't blame them.

By Crisis Causer on May 18, 2008

The more I think about it, the less shocking a statistic it is.  It's only been around since 1994, right?  And think of all the poor ghetto neighborhoods, and the old people, and rednecks, etc.  There's enough types of people out there for me to believe this number.  But as the decades go on, expect that number to drop. 

By Super Dave on May 18, 2008

News:
In their
annual phone survey of U.S. households, Parks Associates found 20
million households are without Internet access, approximately 18% of
the U.S.
 

HERE is an interesting link to a Wikipedia article on poverty in the United states. Basically, 12-15% of the US population lives below the poverty level at any given time. Even more astounding is the fact that within a 10-year timespan about 40% of the population will at some time fall below the poverty level. It is really not that hard to see why so many have never sent an e-mail.

By AjayD on May 19, 2008

Considering that approximately 20% of the US population is over 60 and half of that 20% consists of people 70 and older, the amount of people without an internet connection or who have never used a computer to create a document isn't surprising all.

I am more interested in the percent of people who have no access to broadband internet, rather than that of people who choose not to have the internet or simply can't afford it. Although if most people on Welfare can afford cable TV I don't see why they couldn't afford the internet if they wanted it. On a side note, in reference to your comment SuperDave, it is true that the amount of Americans at or below the poverty level continues to increase while the middle class steadily evaporates as the gap widens between the poor and the rich.

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