Survey Ranks America’s Reading Habits, and the Results Are Troubling
When in the last year have you picked up a book to read and finished the entire thing? If you’re like 46% of Americans, the answer is, “I didn’t.”
That’s a troubling statistic, given that reading books offers benefits far beyond entertainment. Reading can strengthen critical thinking skills, build memory, improve one’s writing skills, and improve word recognition and comprehension.
Knowing that reading offers Americans many benefits, YouGov ran a survey to determine how many people read books in 2023. The results will make any bookworm’s heart sink.
Surveying Readers
To conduct their study, YouGov chose a random sample of 1,500 survey participants to answer questions about their reading habits in 2023. All participants were American and 18+ years old.
Physical books, e-books, and audiobooks all counted as reading in this study.
After weighing their survey sample according to gender, age, and race, among other factors, YouGov determined the margin of error for their overall sample was about 3.5%. The following are YouGov’s results, ranked from the least to most books read by Americans.
Books and Education
Books play an important role in education, and it turns out that the more education one has, the more books they’re likely to read. Seventy-three percent of Americans with a college degree reported reading at least one book in 2023. In contrast, only 44% of those without a college degree did the same.
E-books vs Physical Books
Physical books were the clear winner in YouGov’s study among Americans who read. Nevertheless, people who read digital books have a higher likelihood of reading more.
Of the survey participants who reported reading some or all of their books in digital form, they were significantly more likely to say they read 20+ books in 2023. That makes sense, given that e-books make it easier for readers to have fast and easy access to new reading options the moment they finish a book.
Don’t Write Off Fiction
Here’s some good news if you don’t love reading self-help and other non-fiction books: Fiction offers readers powerful benefits. The ability to connect with characters, even if you’ve never experienced their problem, builds empathy that can translate to real-life situations.
Furthermore, experts point out that reading about a character’s point of view that you don’t agree with can facilitate the reader considering alternate points of view when they otherwise wouldn’t have in real life. Even if you maintain your beliefs after reading about a character’s differing views, you might walk away with the patience and perspective of being more open to listening to other points of view when talking with people.
Reading Challenges
Approximately 32 million Americans 18 years and older have trouble reading, which can make their day-to-day lives challenging. Difficulty reading makes going to school and attending college hard, and it can be limiting in the workplace.
One in ten people has dyslexia, which makes it difficult to read and write. Depending on the reason why one struggles to read, working with an educator who has in-depth knowledge of how to teach reading can make a big difference. There are also tools that people with dyslexia and people with other disabilities can use to help them read.
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