Report: Young People Want to Read More Books

New Report on Reading Habits: Printed Books Dominate, but Lack of Time Keeps Swedes from Reading More, Two Sides reports.

According to Branschkoll.se, a new report reveals that while printed books remain the most popular format, over half of Swedes cite lack of time as the main reason they don’t read more.

Young adults aged 18 to 29 read the least of all age groups — yet 86 percent say they want to read more than they currently do. This is shown in Bokbarometern , a new annual survey on Swedish reading habits published by the Swedish Publishers’ Association.

Printed Books Most Common

In total, 36 percent of the population say they read printed books at least several times a week — twice as many as those who listen to audiobooks (16 percent). Only 5.5 percent report reading e-books.

The top reason for not reading more is lack of time (55 percent), followed by competition from other media (45 percent). Conversely, 10 percent say they never read printed books.

Women Lead in Reading

It is well established that women read printed books more frequently than men — a trend confirmed in the report. 44 percent of women say they read printed books a few times a week or more, compared to 29 percent of men.

Older Adults Read More

The report also confirms familiar patterns: people with higher education levels and those living in urban areas read more than those with lower education levels or living in smaller towns. Age is also a factor — in the 65–84 age group, 28 percent read printed books daily and 49 percent at least a few times a week.

The Bokbarometern survey was conducted by Kantar Media on behalf of the Swedish Publishers’ Association in March. It included 1,003 interviews with people aged 18–84, of which 181 were in the 18–29 age group.