(02/27/13) -

Americans Split on Whether Cell Phones Should Be Used on Flights

Men are more likely than women to support a regulation that would enable passengers to make phone calls during a flight.

Americans are divided when assessing the notion of airline passengers having conversations on their cell phones, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative national sample of 1,007 American adults, 43 per cent of respondents support allowing passengers to talk on their cell phones during a flight, while 45 per cent are opposed.

There is a clear gender gap on this issue, with 48 per cent of male respondents supporting the notion of cell phone conversations during a flight, and 48 per cent of female respondents voicing opposition to it.

Americans aged 18-to-34 are more likely to endorse the use of cell phones during flights (55%) than respondents aged 35-to-54 (38%) and those aged 55 and over (also 38%).

Americans who resided in the South (46%) and West (45%) are more likely to agree with allowing passengers to use their cell phones during a flight than those in the Northeast (41%) and the Midwest (37%).

Most respondents who have accessed their laptop or tablet using an in-flight Wi-Fi connection (55%) would like to be able to talk on their cell phones, compared to 41 per cent of those who have not relied on Wi-Fi on a plane.

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From February 19 to February 20, 2013, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,007 American adults who are Springboard America panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of the United States. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.