We’ve all seen students and teenagers unable to look up from their cell phones, but now the usage of texting is growing among the adult population as well.
According to the latest research from Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, 72% of everyone in the US above the age of 18 actively texts.
That’s up from 65% as of September 2009, and from 58% at the end of 2007. In addition to the fact that text-happy teens are of course eventually turning into adults, Pew says the adoption rate is growing thanks to increased familiarity and accessibility.
“We’ve reached a point where enough other people are texting that (adults) are drawn into using it because they can finally use it to communicate with a substantial number of their friends and family,” said senior researcher Amanda Lenhart.
Additionally, Lenhart noted that unlimited texting plans are now much more common among mobile subscribers, leading users to become more aware and open to using the service.
Teenagers still take the cake when it comes to texting, though. Nearly 90% of teens are texters, and the average 13- to 17-year-old sends 50 text messages every single day.
Those over 18, meanwhile, are only sending an average of 10 texts a day.
Another interesting statistic showed that 65% of adults sleep with their cell phones right next to them. I don’t know about everyone else, but I do that only because my phone doubles as my alarm clock.
Of course, all of these numbers continue to dwindle as the age group is refined and climbed up into the higher brackets.
