{"id":15753,"date":"2013-05-28T10:04:39","date_gmt":"2013-05-28T15:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/%year%\/%monthnum%\/%day%\/in-a-digital-age-parents-value-printed-books-for-their-kids\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T03:30:54","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T08:30:54","slug":"in-a-digital-age-parents-value-printed-books-for-their-kids","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2013\/05\/28\/in-a-digital-age-parents-value-printed-books-for-their-kids\/","title":{"rendered":"In a digital age, parents value printed books for their kids"},"content":{"rendered":"

Parents who have minor children at home are a relatively tech-savvy group. They are more likely than other adults to have computers, internet access, smartphones, and tablet computers. (This relatively high tech use may be due to the fact that parents with minor children living at home tend to also be younger<\/a> than other adults.) They are also more likely than adults without children to read e-books.<\/p>\n\n

\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n

But as parents adopt new reading habits for themselves on electronic devices, the data show that print books remain important when it comes to their children.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n

More than nine in ten parents of minor children say it is important to them that their children read print books\u2014eighty-one percent say it is \u201cvery important,\u201d and an additional 13% say it is \u201csomewhat important.\u201d Very few say having their children read print books is \u201cnot too important\u201d (3%) or \u201cnot important at all\u201d (3%).<\/p>\n\n

E-reading has been on the rise<\/a>\u2014some 23% of Americans ages 16 and older read an e-book in 2012, up from 16% the year before. The proportion of American adults who own an e-reading device is increasing<\/a> as well, with 31% of adults ages 18 and older now owning a tablet and 26% owning an e-reader. And even at the end of 2011, over a third of tablet and e-reader owners who did long-form reading in digital format said they were reading more<\/a> due to the availability of e-content.<\/p>\n\n

When it comes to sharing books or reading with a child, most Americans adults (not just parents) who have read both print and e-books think that print books are the better option<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n

So why do parents want their children exposed to print? \u00a0We don\u2019t know exactly. But Pew Research gained some insight from a recent in-person focus groups.<\/p>\n\n

Modeling the Reading Habit:<\/b> Some parents may want their children to have the same pleasant book-reading experience they remember from when they themselves were children. In fact, one parent from the focus group said that reading printed books himself was important because it helped him model reading habits for his children:<\/p>\n\n

[on a tablet]<\/p>\n\n\n

Many parents described positive memories of their early reading habits and library use, memories centered around print books. One said that picking up books from the library was a reward for good behavior:<\/p>\n\n

[the library]<\/p>\n\n\n

A Sensory Experience:<\/b> Some think that children\u2019s books, which often feature large illustrations and may incorporate various tactile elements, aren\u2019t as well suited to e-ink or touchscreens. And given the relative newness of e-reading and uncertainty around the effects of reading on screens<\/a>, some parents may simply want to temper the exposure their children have to digital materials. \u201cSomehow, I think it\u2019s different,\u201d Alexandra Tyler told the New York Times<\/a>. \u201cWhen you read a book, a proper kid\u2019s book, it engages all the senses. It\u2019s teaching them to turn the page properly. You get the smell of paper, the touch.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

What do you think? Do you prefer some formats for your own reading, and others for reading with children?<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Parents who have young children at home are a relatively tech-savvy group. They are more likely than other adults to have computers, internet access, smartphones, and tablet computers. They are also more likely than adults without children to read e-books. But as parents adapt new reading habits for themselves on electronic devices, the data show that print books remain important when it comes to their children.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","sub_headline":null,"sub_title":"","_prc_public_revisions":[],"_ppp_expiration_hours":0,"_ppp_enabled":false,"ai_generated_summary":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"relatedPosts":[],"_prc_fork_parent":0,"_prc_fork_status":"","_prc_active_fork":0,"datacite_doi":"","datacite_doi_citation":"","_prc_seo_qr_attachment_id":0,"spoken_article_player_enabled":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[291,324],"bylines":[970],"collection":[],"datasets":[],"_post_visibility":[],"formats":[467],"_fund_pool":[],"languages":[],"regions-countries":[515],"research-teams":[526],"class_list":["post-15753","short-read","type-short-read","status-publish","hentry","category-children-tech","category-e-reading","bylines-kathryn-zickuhr","formats-short-read","regions-countries-united-states","research-teams-internet"],"label":"Short Read","post_parent":0,"word_count":500,"canonical_url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2013\/05\/28\/in-a-digital-age-parents-value-printed-books-for-their-kids\/","art_direction":false,"_embeds":[],"table_of_contents":[],"datacite_doi":"","prc_seo_data":{"title":"In a digital age, parents value printed books for their kids","description":"Parents who have young children at home are a relatively tech-savvy group. 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