Reading for pleasure plummets 40%: Alarming decline in two decades, Study finds

Pleasure reading among U.S. adults 15 and older dropped 40 percent in the past two decades, according to researchers.

Fewer Americans than even before are reading for pleasure, according to a new study published Wednesday (August 20), declining 40 percent in the past two decades.

Only 16 percent of the Americans age 15 and over read for leisure every day in 2023, according to a study from researchers at the University of Florida and University College London that was published in the Journal iScience, compared with 28 percent of Americans in 2003.

The study findings

The new findings come as Americans’ attention spans and print book sales are in decline, and AI technology is aiming to summarize knowledge as quickly as possible.

The study was based on time-use data from nearly 2,40,000 Americans between 2003 and 2023 and excluded 2020 due to the covid-19 pandemic- found that time adults spent reading to children did not drop during that period.

But only a small portion of participants, 2 percent - read to kids every day.

The new study shows a widening gap when it comes to reading in America, where people with less education are not as likely to read as people with higher education levels.

In the University of Florida and University College London analysis, participants with college degrees in 2023 were nearly three times more likely to read for pleasure daily than those with a high school degree or less.

Reading is a boon for the brain, heart, and longevity. Yet globally, people are losing the habit of reading for pleasure.

From the U.S. to Australia and the U.K., declining readership is a pressing concern with far-reaching results. Can we revive the joy of reading before it’s too late?