Internet Poll Measures Public Perception Of Cell Phones

An Internet poll on the AAA Foundation's website from June 10 to July 29, 2003 asked visitors about their cell phone habits. Of the 1,827 visitors who responded to the poll, 35% said they did not use a cell phone while driving, 48% said they used a hand-held phone, and 17% said they used a hands-free model.

Users of hands-free models used them a bit more often (3.1 times per 10 trips) than users of hand-held models (2.7 times per trip). Of people who said they did not use a cell phone while driving, 67% agreed that it is very dangerous to use a hands-free phone when driving, compared to 36% for users of hand-held phones and only 24% of hands-free phone users.

Readers are cautioned that the findings are based on a small sample and are not nationally representative. Nonetheless, we believe the findings are worth publicizing. The survey does show that people who use hands-free phones believe them to be safer than hand-held phones and that they tend to use their phones while driving more often than users of hand-held phones. However, extensive research has demonstrated that it is the thought processes that is dangerous more than the manipulation of the phone. Therefore, using either type of phone while driving may get you in trouble.

Statement: "It's very dangerous to use a hand held cell phone while driving,"

Type of Phone User	Percentage of Respondents Who "Strongly Agree" or "Agree"
Hand-held users	67%
Hands-free users	81%

View all of the data in chart format