Study: Kansans speak quickly but say little in phone calls
Kansas’ no-nonsense disposition might not have been totally effaced by the modern era: An analysis of calls nationwide shows that Kansans are some of the quickest to get to the punch.
The state ranked fourth for how quickly its residents speak and second for how little time they spent speaking in an analysis by the Marchex Institute, a phone service company that analyzed speaking patterns in 4 million calls across the U.S. On average, Americans speak 110 to 150 words per minute, according to Marchex.
Kansas wasn’t alone in the Midwest: Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa are also home to some of the fastest speakers who spoke the least. The other fast talkers were in the Northwest: Oregon (the fastest), Washington and Idaho.
Most of the slowest speakers were in the South and Southwest, stretching from New Mexico to North Carolina.
And New Yorkers, true to form, spent the most time talking of any state and were the fourth-quickest to hang up when placed on hold.
Kansans were among the top 10 most patient when placed on hold, right after Mississippi and Utah.
Oliver Morrison: 316-268-6499, @ORMorrison
FASTEST TALKERS
1. Oregon; 2. Minnesota; 3. Massachusetts; 4. Kansas; 5. Iowa; 6. Vermont; 7. Alaska; 8. South Dakota; 9. New Hampshire; 10. Nebraska; 11. Connecticut; 12. North Dakota; 13. Washington; 14. Wisconsin; 15. Rhode Island; 16. Idaho; 17. Florida; 18. Pennsylvania; 19. New Jersey; 20. West Virginia; 21. Maine; 22. Colorado; 23. California; 24. Missouri; 25. Montana; 26. Indiana; 27. Hawaii; 28. Virginia; 29. Nevada; 30. Arizona; 31. Utah; 32. Michigan; 33. Tennessee; 34. Maryland; 35. Oklahoma; 36. Wyoming; 37. Delaware; 38. New York; 39. Kentucky; 40. Illinois; 41. Ohio; 42. Arkansas; 43. Georgia; 44. Texas; 45. New Mexico; 46. North Carolina; 47. Alabama; 48. South Carolina; 49. Louisiana; 50. Mississippi
MOST TIME SPENT TALKING
1. New York; 2. California; 3. New Jersey; 4. Nevada; 5. Maryland; 6. New Mexico; 7.South Carolina; 8. Texas; 9. North Carolina; 10. Arizona; 11. Maine; 12. Virginia; 13. Rhode Island; 14. Massachusetts; 15. Missouri; 16. Illinois; 17. Ohio; 18. Washington; 19. Connecticut; 20. Michigan; 21. Oregon; 22. Pennsylvania; 23. Louisiana; 24. Delaware; 25. Florida; 26. Tennessee; 27. Georgia; 28. New Hampshire; 29. Alabama; 30. Kentucky; 31. Mississippi; 32. Utah; 33. West Virginia; 34. Indiana; 35. Colorado; 36. Hawaii; 37. Vermont; 38. Arkansas; 39. Idaho; 40. Wyoming; 41. Nebraska; 42. Montana; 43. Alaska; 44. North Dakota; 45. South Dakota; 46. Oklahoma; 47. Kansas; 48. Wisconsin; 49. Minnesota; 50. Iowa
MOST IMPATIENT WHEN PLACED ON HOLD
1. Kentucky; 2. Ohio; 3. North Carolina; 4. New York; 5. West Virginia; 6. Maine; 7. Vermont; 8. Montana; 9. Connecticut; 10. Alaska; 11. Wyoming; 12. Nebraska; 13. North Dakota; 14. New Hampshire; 15. Rhode Island; 16. Virginia; 17. Wisconsin; 18. Oregon; 19. Iowa; 20. Idaho; 21. South Carolina; 22. Oklahoma; 23. Texas; 24. Delaware; 25. Pennsylvania; 26. Arkansas; 27. New Jersey; 28. Massachusetts; 29. Indiana; 30. Maryland; 31. California; 32. Arizona; 33. Washington; 34. Tennessee; 35. Alabama; 36. Missouri; 37. Nevada; 38. Hawaii; 39. Georgia; 40. Michigan; 41. Kansas; 42. Mississippi; 43. Utah; 44. New Mexico; 45. South Dakota; 46. Louisiana; 47. Colorado; 48. Florida; 49. Illinois; 50. Minnesota
This story was originally published February 3, 2016 at 9:12 AM with the headline "Study: Kansans speak quickly but say little in phone calls."