Survey Shows Americans Are Increasingly Addicted to Mobile Email

According to AOL's third annual “Email Addiction” survey, more Americans than ever before are using portable devices to keep tabs on their email throughout the day and night, and from virtually anywhere.

AOL, in partnership with Opinion Research Corporation, conducted online surveys with 4,025 respondents 13 and older in 20 cities around the country to measure email usage. It showed that email use on portable devices has nearly doubled since 2004, and as a result, people are checking email around the clock.

According to the survey, the average email user checks mail about five times a day, and 59% of those with portable devices are using them to check email every time a new message arrives.

Forty-three percent of email users with portable devices say they keep the device nearby when they are sleeping to listen for incoming mail.

No Escape

With or without portable devices, 15% of Americans describe themselves as “addicted to email,” and many are even planning their vacations with email access in mind.

About four in ten email users say it is “very” or “somewhat” important to them to think about email accessibility when they are planning a vacation, and eighty-three percent of email users admit to checking their mail once a day while actually on vacation.

Fifty-nine percent of people emailing from portable devices are checking email in bed while in their pajamas; 53% in the bathroom; 37% are checking email while they drive; and 12% admit to checking email in church.

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