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"A new study from the Pew Research Center on young Americans\u2019 library habits defies the conventional narrative of today\u2019s youth as a generation who have abandoned print. Despite being heavy Internet users, the press release states that \u201CAmericans under age 30 are strong supporters of traditional library services,\u201D including in-person assistance and \u2014 yes \u2014 books.\nPew found that Americans between the ages of 16 and 29 (like me) were actually more likely to have read a book in print in the past year than their 30-and-up counterparts; the breakdown was 75% to 64%, respectively. (Americans in this younger age bracket were also more likely to have visited a library in the past year, about as likely to have received assistance from a librarian in the past year, more likely to utilize a library\u2019s quiet space and more likely to be \u201Cstrongly opposed\u201D to the idea of automated check-out services than older Americans.) \nAnd, despite growing popularity of e-books among all age ranges, Americans aged 30 to 49 are more likely than Americans aged 16 to 29 to own an e-reader or tablet computer.\nSo what\u2019s going on here? In part, it\u2019s that young people who are still in school tend to stick to pretty conventional research methods. \nAs Kathryn Zuckuhr, one of the authors of the study, told me in an email, \u201CThe need to do reading and research for school are definitely part of what\u2019s keeping print the base of many younger Americans\u2019 reading habits.\u201D (The same team of researchers found in 2011 that between ages 16 and 29, 81% of readers gave school or work as their reason for reading, 76% said they read for pleasure, 73% to keep up with current events and 81% to research a topic of interest.) \nAnother possible reason is that schools have not switched over to e-readers and e-books. Cost is likely a major factor here \u2014 and also probably explains why adults are more likely to own e-readers. Young people who are reading e-books were \u201Cmore likely to read their e-books on a computer (55%) or cell phone (41%),\u201D Zickuhr said.\nPerhaps, then, the continued prevalence of print books has less to do with their popularity than with the ease with availability. Young people may be in the process of transitioning to e-books and e-readers, only at a slower pace due to their more limited resources. For now, at least, we have paper.\n\nPhoto via iStockphoto, PinkBadger"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2013/06/28/youth-read-print-books/>