Gone are the days when reading a book was the preferred means to knowledge, replaced by the rapid consumption of digital media and the allure of screen-based entertainment. This phenomenon is growing in America, and it is pronounced among our youth.
The inference is that we appear to be reading less these days, and while our attention span does not yet rival that of the much-maligned goldfish (allegedly nine seconds), it is getting discernibly shorter.
First, is it true? And second, do our technological gadgets predispose us to this phenomenon? Are we sacrificing something important, turning from books to bots? The truth is in the numbers.
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The research suggests that we read less and less about more and more, moving rapidly from one topic to another within shorter and shorter time increments. And our technological prowess (especially our beloved smartphones) is fostering this, along with attention spans that are shrinking as we speak — or, in this case, read.
More and more Americans are not reading books. Nearly half of all U.S. adults (46%) did not read a book in 2023. This continues a 10-year trend reflecting serious deterioration in our reading habits.
With the advent of the internet, Americans seem to be reading (but not necessarily in depth), and books no longer seem to be a primary source of our “edification.” The problem is not limited to our adult population.
In recent years, less than 20% of U.S. teenagers report reading a book, magazine, or newspaper daily for pleasure, while more than 80% say they use social media every day, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.
In the early 1990s, 33% of 10th graders read a newspaper almost daily. By 2016, that number was only 2%. In the late 1970s, 60% of 12th graders read a book or magazine almost daily; by 2016, only 16% did. One of every three teenagers has not read a book for pleasure in a year.
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There appears to be a generational shift in the reading habits of young people, including some from Generation Z, who don’t seem to view reading as important.
Social psychologist Jean Twenge offers perspective on Gen Z, those born between 1996 and 2010. Zoomers, as they are called, grew up with the internet, whereas former generations grew up with a less interactive media: television.
Earlier grade students (3-8) are affected as well. The reading stamina of these youths has changed since 2019. A survey found that 53% reported reading stamina in students (their ability to read sustainably at length) decreased considerably, while 30% said it decreased “a little.” Folks, that’s eight out of 10 future voting adults.
In educational contexts, there’s an increasing emphasis on digital literacy and multimedia learning, often at the expense of traditional reading. Simultaneously, there’s a noticeable preference for content that entertains rather than educates. Research shows that reading from a screen can have consequences; it interferes with in-depth learning.
“Reading stamina must be built often,” says Gloria Mark, attention researcher at UC-Irvine. “So, if students aren’t learning how to read entire books at home or school, that habit often carries into adulthood.”
Adults and students alike seem to equate reading something quickly on their smartphone or tablet with reading a book, when it’s actually often skimming and scanning information or stories, Professor Maryanne Wolf says.
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Moreover, attention spans are getting shorter.
Mark continues: In 2003, “attention spans averaged about two-and-a-half minutes on any screen before people switched. In the last five, six years, they’re averaging 47 seconds on a screen.”
And, as is often the case, there is more to the story: Through her research, Mark found a correlation between the frequency of attention switching and stress: With “attention switching — which essentially is multitasking — you find that blood pressure increases as frequency of attention shifting increases.”
People of all ages are more likely to make errors when switching their attention between different activities. Known as “switch cost,” it refers to the mental effort it takes to reorient oneself to a new activity. And there are other costs beyond the scope of this article.
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It seems our focus on technology in education as some God-like Promethean entity bearing the gift of immediate knowledge and wisdom also brings with it unwanted psychological and physical consequences. Now that we know this, what shall we do?
The freedom to speak and read is essential to our democracy. The less we exercise the former, the less we will have of the latter.
F. Andrew Wolf Jr., Ph.D., is director of the Fulcrum Institute and author of numerous articles and books including Discovering the Essay, Our Sense Of Relatedness, and a forthcoming text this year, Reading, Writing & Reasoning.