Survey on Public Perception of the Humanities
Indicator

Time Spent Reading

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Reading is a foundational activity for the humanities, but the share of Americans who read more than 20 minutes per day for personal interest ("intensive readers") shrank from 2003 (the earliest year for which data are available) to 2023.1 Despite this decline, “power readers” (people who read more than 45 minutes) spent somewhat more time reading on average than they did around the turn of the century. The data also reveal that older people and those with greater educational attainment were more likely to spend a nonnegligible part of their day reading.

Findings and Trends
Findings and Trends
  • From 2003 to 2023 the share of Americans age 15 and older who were intensive readers (reading more than 20 minutes a day) declined substantially, from 22.3% to 14.6%  (Indicator V-06a). In comparison, the share watching shows, gaming, or using a computer for personal interest more than 20 minutes per day remained steady, at approximately 79%. The share of power readers (who read more than 45 minutes per day) also decreased, from 15.3% to 10.7%, while the share of power watchers/gamers was largely unchanged, hovering between 74% and 75%.
  • Most Americans (84%) read for five minutes or less per day in 2023, while only 19% spent that little time watching shows or movies, playing games, or consuming other content on their electronic devices (Indicator V-06b).
  • Among young people, the disparity between time dedicated to reading and that spent on show watching/gaming/other computer use was particularly marked (Indicator V-06c). While only 9.5% of 15-to-24-year-olds read more than 20 minutes a day for pleasure in 2023, almost 80% spent more than 20 minutes a day engaged in screen-related activities and noncomputer games.
  • Though Americans were less likely to be power readers in 2023 than they were two decades earlier, the median number of minutes those readers spent reading increased 17% (from 90 minutes to 105 minutes) over the 2003–2023 time period (not pictured). Power show watchers/gamers/computer users in 2023 also spent more time at these pursuits than in 2003, but the percentage increase was less pronounced (11%, rising from 180 to 200 minutes).
  • In 2023, older Americans were far likelier to be intensive readers than other age groups (Indicator V-06d). Approximately 22% of Americans age 55 or older spent more than 20 minutes of their day reading, compared to only about 10% of Americans age 54 or younger. But as dramatic a difference as that is, it is less pronounced than 20 years earlier, when older readers were 2.7 times as likely as younger people to read intensively. While the share of younger Americans reading more than 20 minutes a day decreased by a third from 2020 to 2023, the share of the older cohort who read more than 20 minutes a day shrank by 44%, which narrowed the difference between the two age groups.
  • In both 2003 and 2023, Americans with the highest levels of formal education were substantially more likely to be intensive readers than those without a college degree, but the shares of such readers at every education level shrank over the intervening 20 years (Indicator V-06e). In 2003, 21% of Americans with a high school degree were intensive readers, compared to 28% of college graduates with a terminal bachelor’s degree and almost 40% of Americans with a graduate or professional degree. By 2023, however, the share of Americans with a terminal high school degree who read intensively had shrunk by half, while the share of terminal bachelor’s degree holders reading that much had decreased by just over a fifth, and the share among those with graduate or professional degrees had contracted by approximately a third.
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Data Source and Other Information

* Spent 20 minutes or more engaged in the activity
** Excluding the watching of religious shows.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey. Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).

About the Data

The American Time Use Survey activity codes used for this analysis are listed below. One of the objectives of the analysis was to gauge how much time people spent reading relative to time spent on screens. Though some of the activities under “120307 Playing games” do not involve electronic entertainment, the category was included because it captures time spent playing computer games.

120312 Reading for Personal Interest

  • reading a magazine/book/newspaper (personal interest)

  • flipping/leafing through magazine (personal interest)

  • listening to books on tape/audio books (personal interest)

  • borrowing books from the library

  • doing research (personal interest)

  • checking out library books

  • being read to (personal interest)

  • reading, unspecified

  • returning library books/browsing at the library

  • reading a book on a Kindle or other electronic book reader (personal interest)

120307 Playing games

  • playing board games/Scrabble/cards

  • playing computer games/playing games over the Internet

  • hiding matzo (Passover)/hiding Easter eggs

  • playing poker

  • hitting a pinata

  • spinning dreidels

  • playing bingo

120308 Computer use for leisure (exc. Games)

  • computer use, unspecified

  • surfing the internet/web (personal interest)

  • downloading files, music, pictures (personal interest)

  • Using Twitter or tweeting

  • writing computer software (personal interest)

  • checking Myspace

  • computer use, leisure (personal interest)

  • browsing on the internet (personal interest)

  • participating in a chat room (personal interest)

  • designing/updating website (personal interest)

  • checking Facebook/Instagram

  • computer programming (personal interest)

Related Indicators

For additional information on adult Americans’ reading ability and practices, see “Adult Literacy,” “Book Reading Behavior,” “Book Reading: Topics,” and “Reading to Young Children by Family Members.”

For indicators on reading competency among children and young adults, see “Trends in Basic Reading Skills Among School-Age Children,” “Student Proficiency in Math, Reading, and Science,” and “Reading Competency: An International Perspective.”

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Data Source and Other Information

* Excluding the watching of religious shows. 

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey. Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).

 

About the Data

The American Time Use Survey activity codes used for this analysis are listed below. One of the objectives of the analysis was to gauge how much time people spent reading relative to time spent on screens. Though some of the activities under “120307 Playing games” do not involve electronic entertainment, the category was included because it captures time spent playing computer games.

120312 Reading for Personal Interest

  • reading a magazine/book/newspaper (personal interest)
  • flipping/leafing through magazine (personal interest)
  • listening to books on tape/audio books (personal interest)
  • borrowing books from the library
  • doing research (personal interest)
  • checking out library books
  • being read to (personal interest)
  • reading, unspecified
  • returning library books/browsing at the library
  • reading a book on a Kindle or other electronic book reader (personal interest)

120307 Playing games

  • playing board games/Scrabble/cards
  • playing computer games/playing games over the Internet
  • hiding matzo (Passover)/hiding Easter eggs
  • playing poker
  • hitting a pinata
  • spinning dreidels
  • playing bingo

120308 Computer use for leisure (exc. Games)

  • computer use, unspecified
  • surfing the internet/web (personal interest)
  • downloading files, music, pictures (personal interest)
  • Using Twitter or tweeting
  • writing computer software (personal interest)
  • checking Myspace
  • computer use, leisure (personal interest)
  • browsing on the internet (personal interest)
  • participating in a chat room (personal interest)
  • designing/updating website (personal interest)
  • checking Facebook/Instagram
  • computer programming (personal interest)
Related Indicators

For additional information on adult Americans’ reading ability and practices, see “Adult Literacy,” “Book Reading Behavior,” “Book Reading: Topics,” and “Reading to Young Children by Family Members.”

For indicators on reading competency among children and young adults, see “Trends in Basic Reading Skills Among School-Age Children,” “Student Proficiency in Math, Reading, and Science,” and “Reading Competency: An International Perspective.”

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Data Source and Other Information

* Spent 20 minutes or more engaged in the activity.
** Excluding the watching of religious shows.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey. Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).

About the Data

The American Time Use Survey activity codes used for this analysis are listed below. One of the objectives of the analysis was to gauge how much time people spent reading relative to time spent on screens. Though some of the activities under “120307 Playing games” do not involve electronic entertainment, the category was included because it captures time spent playing computer games.

120312 Reading for Personal Interest

  • reading a magazine/book/newspaper (personal interest)
  • flipping/leafing through magazine (personal interest)
  • listening to books on tape/audio books (personal interest)
  • borrowing books from the library
  • doing research (personal interest)
  • checking out library books
  • being read to (personal interest)
  • reading, unspecified
  • returning library books/browsing at the library
  • reading a book on a Kindle or other electronic book reader (personal interest)

120307 Playing games

  • playing board games/Scrabble/cards
  • playing computer games/playing games over the Internet
  • hiding matzo (Passover)/hiding Easter eggs
  • playing poker
  • hitting a pinata
  • spinning dreidels
  • playing bingo

120308 Computer use for leisure (exc. Games)

  • computer use, unspecified
  • surfing the internet/web (personal interest)
  • downloading files, music, pictures (personal interest)
  • Using Twitter or tweeting
  • writing computer software (personal interest)
  • checking Myspace
  • computer use, leisure (personal interest)
  • browsing on the internet (personal interest)
  • participating in a chat room (personal interest)
  • designing/updating website (personal interest)
  • checking Facebook/Instagram
  • computer programming (personal interest)
Related Indicators

For additional information on adult Americans’ reading ability and practices, see “Adult Literacy,” “Book Reading Behavior,” “Book Reading: Topics,” and “Reading to Young Children by Family Members.”

For indicators on reading competency among children and young adults, see “Trends in Basic Reading Skills Among School-Age Children,” “Student Proficiency in Math, Reading, and Science,” and “Reading Competency: An International Perspective.”]

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Data Source and Other Information

* Read for 20 minutes or more for pleasure.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey. Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).

About the Data

The American Time Use Survey activity codes used for this analysis are listed below. One of the objectives of the analysis was to gauge how much time people spent reading relative to time spent on screens. Though some of the activities under “120307 Playing games” do not involve electronic entertainment, the category was included because it captures time spent playing computer games.

120312 Reading for Personal Interest

  • reading a magazine/book/newspaper (personal interest)
  • flipping/leafing through magazine (personal interest)
  • listening to books on tape/audio books (personal interest)
  • borrowing books from the library
  • doing research (personal interest)
  • checking out library books
  • being read to (personal interest)
  • reading, unspecified
  • returning library books/browsing at the library
  • reading a book on a Kindle or other electronic book reader (personal interest)

120307 Playing games

  • playing board games/Scrabble/cards
  • playing computer games/playing games over the Internet
  • hiding matzo (Passover)/hiding Easter eggs
  • playing poker
  • hitting a pinata
  • spinning dreidels
  • playing bingo

120308 Computer use for leisure (exc. Games)

  • computer use, unspecified
  • surfing the internet/web (personal interest)
  • downloading files, music, pictures (personal interest)
  • Using Twitter or tweeting
  • writing computer software (personal interest)
  • checking Myspace
  • computer use, leisure (personal interest)
  • browsing on the internet (personal interest)
  • participating in a chat room (personal interest)
  • designing/updating website (personal interest)
  • checking Facebook/Instagram
Related Indicators

For additional information on adult Americans’ reading ability and practices, see “Adult Literacy,” “Book Reading Behavior,” “Book Reading: Topics,” and “Reading to Young Children by Family Members.”

For indicators on reading competency among children and young adults, see “Trends in Basic Reading Skills Among School-Age Children,” “Student Proficiency in Math, Reading, and Science,” and “Reading Competency: An International Perspective.”

Copy link
Data Source and Other Information

* Read for 20 minutes or more for pleasure.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey. Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).

About the Data

The American Time Use Survey activity codes used for this analysis are listed below. One of the objectives of the analysis was to gauge how much time people spent reading relative to time spent on screens. Though some of the activities under “120307 Playing games” do not involve electronic entertainment, the category was included because it captures time spent playing computer games.

120312 Reading for Personal Interest

  • reading a magazine/book/newspaper (personal interest)
  • flipping/leafing through magazine (personal interest)
  • listening to books on tape/audio books (personal interest)
  • borrowing books from the library
  • doing research (personal interest)
  • checking out library books
  • being read to (personal interest)
  • reading, unspecified
  • returning library books/browsing at the library
  • reading a book on a Kindle or other electronic book reader (personal interest)

120307 Playing games

  • playing board games/Scrabble/cards
  • playing computer games/playing games over the Internet
  • hiding matzo (Passover)/hiding Easter eggs
  • playing poker
  • hitting a pinata
  • spinning dreidels
  • playing bingo

120308 Computer use for leisure (exc. Games)

  • computer use, unspecified
  • surfing the internet/web (personal interest)
  • downloading files, music, pictures (personal interest)
  • Using Twitter or tweeting
  • writing computer software (personal interest)
  • checking Myspace
  • computer use, leisure (personal interest)
  • browsing on the internet (personal interest)
  • participating in a chat room (personal interest)
  • designing/updating website (personal interest)
  • checking Facebook/Instagram
  • computer programming (personal interest)
Related Indicators

For additional information on adult Americans’ reading ability and practices, see “Adult Literacy,” “Book Reading Behavior,” “Book Reading: Topics,” and “Reading to Young Children by Family Members.”

For indicators on reading competency among children and young adults, see “Trends in Basic Reading Skills Among School-Age Children,” “Student Proficiency in Math, Reading, and Science,” and “Reading Competency: An International Perspective.”

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The Humanities Indicators and Departmental Survey have been made possible in part by grants from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this website do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Endnotes

  • 1

    The American Time Use Survey, which collects the data on which these indicators are based, asks respondents to recall all their activities beginning at 4 am on the day preceding the survey interview to 4 am on the day of the interview.