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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to describe and analyze the childhood home and school experiences and reading material preferences of adult avid leisure readers and literate non-readers in order to determine the factors that may have contributed to the development of their current reading habits and attitudes and future reading plans.
Three young adult avid leisure readers and three literate non-readers were selected by using an "extreme" or "deviant" case sampling approach. Only those who were especially avid readers or extreme non-readers were selected for participation. The primary research instrument used in this study was the interview, and the methodology was qualitative in nature. An interview guide consisting of open-ended focus questions was created in order to elicit appropriate information from the participants.
As a result of the data analysis, 10 major themes emerged. Four of these were characteristics common to the avid leisure readers: supportive home literacy environment, engagement in the pursuit of knowledge, benefits of book ownership, and specific reading material preferences. In addition, there were three themes related to the characteristics of literate non-readers: inadequate home literacy support, anxiety of text format, and surprising college leisure-reading discoveries. Finally, three themes represented commonalities that both groups shared. These were unpleasant experiences with librarians, negative classroom experiences, and a desire to foster a love of reading in children.
Several implications for parents, teachers, librarians, and higher education were made. These included increasing the availability of reading materials at home and in classrooms, reading aloud to children, and engaging in literacy activities such as visiting the library. Classroom reading methodologies including reading aloud, using textbooks and basal readers, and grouping homogeneously for reading instruction should be avoided. Children should be encouraged to read series of books that are similar in terms of authorship, genre, or characters. In-services for parents should be provided to assist them in helping their children engage in and enjoy leisure reading. Librarians should attempt to create a relaxing and non-threatening environment for their clients. College instructors should include and integrate fiction reading into their courses.
