Americans living with disability and their technology profile

According to a national survey conducted in September 2010, 27% of American adults live with a disability that interferes with activities of daily living, including:

• 15% of American adults who say they have serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs.
• 11% of American adults who say that, because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, they have serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions.
• 9% of American adults who say they have serious difficulty hearing.
• 8% of American adults who say that, because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, they have difficulty doing errands alone such as visiting a doctor’s office or shopping.
• 7% of American adults who say they are blind or have serious difficulty seeing, even when wearing glasses.
• 3% of American adults who say they have trouble dressing or bathing.

Fifty-four percent of adults living with a disability use the Internet, compared with 81% of adults who report none of the disabilities listed in the survey. Two percent of American adults say they have a disability or illness that makes it harder or impossible for them to use the Internet.

Americans living with disability are more likely than other adults to live in lower-income households: 46% of adults with a disability live in households with $30,000 or less in annual income, compared with 26% of adults who report no disabilities and live in households with that level of income.

They are also likely to have low levels of education: 61% of Americans living with a disability have a high school education or less, compared with 40% of adults who report no disabilities and have that level of educational attainment.

Americans living with a disability are also likely to be older: 58% are age 50 or older, compared with 36% of adults who report no disabilities who are that age.