Understanding Children's Reading Activities: Reading Motivation, Skill and Child Characteristics as Predictors

Wiley-Blackwell. 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148. Tel: 800-835-6770; Tel: 781-388-8598; Fax: 781-388-8232; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA

Y

17

Individual Characteristics; Gender Differences; Age Differences; Socioeconomic Status; Reading Skills; Motivation; Incentives; Predictor Variables; Time; Reading Habits; Children; Preadolescents; Recreational Reading; Electronic Publishing; Textbooks; Cartoons; Periodicals; Fiction; Grades (Scholastic); Social Influences; Foreign Countries; Questionnaires; Multiple Regression Analysis

10.1111/1467-9817.12060

0141-0423

This study examined the extent to which a range of child characteristics (sex, age, socioeconomic status, reading skill and intrinsic and extrinsic reading motivation) predicted engagement (i.e., time spent) in different reading activities (fiction books, factual books, school textbooks, comics, magazines and digital texts). In total, 791 children (aged 8-11?years) participated. There was considerable variation in the factors predicting engagement in different reading activities. Although intrinsic reading motivation was a good predictor of recreational book reading, age was a stronger predictor of engagement with digital texts. Furthermore, specific dimensions of motivation predicted engagement in different reading activities; being motivated to read challenging texts predicted recreational book reading, whereas being motivated to achieve good grades predicted schoolbook reading. On the other hand, social reasons predicted engagement with magazines and comics. Implications for education and the relationship between child characteristics and choice of reading activities are discussed.

As Provided

43

2016

EJ1087886