By: Katie Devoe
The digital age has brought smart phones, tablets and laptops which constantly connect everyone to the internet. With these innovations, people are more interested in social media than reading. In 2014, studies by the PEW Research Center, an objective study organization, show that 23 percent of American adults did not read a book of any form last year. Due to the vast amount of media and information available a click away, it’s no wonder that number has increased by 15 percent since 1978.The decrease in how much time people read might be connected to new technology.
Fortunately, paperback books remain the most popular form of reading even though over 90 percent of American adults own a smartphone. Tablets allow people to digitally purchase a book, but more than 50 percent of nine- to seventeen-year-olds prefer to read a paperback book, according to a Scholastic survey. The numbers show that reading a paperback book is more appealing than reading an eBook. Even though more people read paperback books, there is a decrease in reading time because electronics are used more often than books are read.
Research has not directly indicated that adolescents are reading less because of the amount of time they spend online; however, the internet could be a factor in the decline because technology instantly lets people access media and acts as a distractor. In addition, Common Sense Media reported that 45 percent of seventeen-year-olds say they have not read for pleasure more than two times in the last year. The difference in age between adults and teens does not appear to be a factor in the amount of time spent reading, either, because studies show both groups are reading less. People also rely on the internet for research instead of nonfiction books which shows an increasing dependence on the internet.
Technology is an essential part of daily life in the twenty-first century, and people depend on the internet, tablets, and smartphones more than they realize. Simple research projects for history classes were once completed with books and a visit to the library, but now projects are completed with Google searches. The amount of time spent reading books is declining as the internet becomes the main source of entertainment and information, but literature remains a fundamental part of every culture.
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