Amongst heads of companies in 1954:
- 93% of large company CEOs had traveled internationally
- 89% of mid-size firm CEOs
- 86% of small firm CEOs
Source: The Influence of Foreign Travel on Political Attitudes of American Businessmen on JSTOR
Ithiel de Sola Pool, Suzanne Keller, Raymond A. Bauer, The Influence of Foreign Travel on Political Attitudes of American Businessmen, The Public Opinion Quarterly, Vol. 20, No. 1, Special Issue on Studies in Political Communication (Spring, 1956), pp. 161-175
The above suggests that, even in the 1950s, global travel experience was important for those wishing to become executives and business leaders.
From the text, in 1954, about half of U.S. adults will have traveled once in their lifetime.
Compare to today:
- 71% of adults have traveled internationally
- 49% of adults have been to 3 or more countries
- 93% of college educated adults have traveled internationally
- 70% of college educated adults have been to 3 or more countries
- About 1 in 8 were born in another country.
- Between 1 in 4 and 1 in 3 people living in the U.S. have studied, lived, worked or were born abroad.
- More than 1 in 5 households in the U.S. speak a language other than English, at home.
