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Xerox University Microfilms 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 75-27,358 WOLF, Ronald Edward, 1937THE LEISURE-TIME READING BEHAVIORS OF PERSONS SIXTY-FIVE YEARS CR OLDER LIVING WITHIN HCMES FOR 1HE AGED IN KENT COUNTY, MICHIGAN. M ichigan S ta te U n iv e r sity , P h.D ., 1975 Library Scien ce Xerox University Microfilms r Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 © Copyright by RONALD EDWARD WOLF 1975 THE LEISURE-TIME READING BEHAVIORS OF PERSONS SIXTY-FIVE YEARS OR OLDER LIVING WITHIN HOMES FOR THE AGED IN KENT COUNTY, MICHIGAN By Ronald Edward Wolf A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State U n iv e rs ity in p a rtia l fu lf illm e n t o f the requirements fo r the degree o f DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY College o f Education 1975 ABSTRACT THE LEISURE-TIME READING BEHAVIORS OF PERSONS SIXTY-FIVE YEARS OR OLDER LIVING WITHIN HOMES FOR THE AGED IN KENT COUNTY, MICHIGAN By Ronald Edward Wolf Purpose o f the Study The purpose o f th is d e s c rip tiv e study was to o b ta in , analyze, and compare data regarding the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f per­ sons 1iv in g w ith in eleven homes fo r the aged in Kent County, Michigan. The study focused on two major problems: (1) the id e n tific a tio n o f the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f the e ld e rly , and (2) a de ter­ mination as to the re la tio n s h ip between the id e n tifie d reading behaviors and age, education, sex, former occupation, m a rita l sta tu s, an<| former lo ca tio n o f residence o f the respondents. Design o f the Study The population fo r th is study consisted o f persons liv in g w ith in eleven homes fo r the aged in Kent County, Michigan. A simple random sample o f 249 respondents liv in g w ith in the homes provided the basis fo r th is study. responded. Of the 249 respondents contacted, a ll persons Ronald Edward Wolf Each respondent was requested to complete a questionnaire which consisted o f 18 questions. The instrum ent, designed by the Researcher and his guidance committee, was e n title d Reading Survey. The data were analyzed .by the use o f ; t it e s t s , chi-square te s ts ,, productmoment c o rre la tio n s , and analysis o f variance. In a d d itio n , 66 o f the respondents p a rtic ip a te d in group interview s which served as a fo llo w up to the questionnaire. Major Findings The s ta t is t ic a l te sts supported the fo llo w in g fin d in g s : 1. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and v a rie ty in reading. 2. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between v a rie ty in reading and sex, education, former occupation, and m a rita l status. 3. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and education and former occupations o f the respondents. 4. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the use o f lib r a r y services and education, sex, former occupation, and m arital status. 5. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between periods o f in te n ­ sive readirtg and sex, education, and past lo c a tio n .o f residence. 6. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the recognized therapeutic value o f reading and education and former occupation. 7. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between purposes fo r read­ ing and age, sex, education, former occupation and m arital status. Ronald Edward W o lf 8. There is a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between reasons fo r re ­ s tric te d reading and age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l status. The group interview s w ith the respondents supported the fo llo w in g conclusions: 1. The reading needs o f older persons could be more adequately met in retirem ent homes by: (a) the pu blic lib r a ry going to olde r persons w ith reading programs; (b) an increased supply o f la rg e -p rin t books th a t are broader in the scope o f content and o f a manageable s iz e , and (c) keeping a fresh supply o f books in the homes. 2. Reading is a life - lo n g process and i t is extremely d i f f i c u l t to in te re s t non-readers in e x is tin g reading programs. F urther, the respondents indicated th a t the most s ig n ific a n t fa c to r in developing reading habits was seeing th e ir parents read. 3. The respondents stated th a t reading, hobbies, and in te re s ts in the performing a rts do co n trib u te to adjustment in the la te r years of life . 4. Persons who engaged in reading a c t iv itie s were also s o c ia lly involved w ith one another w ith in the homes and w ith a c t iv itie s outside the homes. 5. Homes w ith the most via ble reading programs were those which had lib ra ria n s or book services managed by the e ld e rly residents themselves. DEDICATION C h a rlo tte , Ronald J r. and Mary My Family ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The w r ite r is indebted to many persons who gave o f themselves during the many phases o f his doctoral program. A real sense o f g ra titu d e is extended to a supportive guid­ ance committee: Dr. W illiam K. Durr, chairman o f my guidance committee, whose guidance and understanding contributed to the successful con­ clusion o f n\y doctoral program. Dr. Lois Bader, whose advice, encouragement, and profession­ alism contributed to making my doctoral studies p e rtin e n t to reading a period o f growth and a rewarding experience. Dr. Ronald G. Rex, who supported me from the beginning, his advice, and encouragement which were needed during my doctoral studies. Dr. Vera Borosage, who w illin g ly served as my cognate advisor and provided the needed guidance and support in I would 1ike to thank my th a t area. guidance committee as a group fo r th e ir professional ism, understanding, and encouragement throughout doctoral studies. I fee l th a t each o f my my committee members, in th e ir own special ways, helped me to grow as a person and as a student. Dr. John Schweitzer o f Education Research Consultants, College o f Education, fo r g ivin g th is study s tru c tu re and fo r the many hours he gave in helping me resolve many research problems. To the many senior c itiz e n s who made th is study possible. Their in te re s t and support was a constant source o f encouragement fo r me in the completion o f the study. To the a d m in istra to rs, program d ire c to rs , and social d ire c ­ to rs in each o f the homes fo r the aged fo r th e ir cooperation and help in th is study. To my fa m ily fo r th e ir f a it h fu l and un selfish support o f rry e ffo rts in pursuing the doctoral degree; to my w ife C h arlotte , to my ch ild re n Ronand and Mary, I extend a very g ra te fu l thanks. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page LIST OF TABLES.............................................................................................. I. II. III. IV. v ii THE PROBLEM................................................................................. 1 Background ..................................................................................... Statement o f Purpose ................................................................. Assumptions ................................................................................. D e fin itio n o f Terms ................................................................. L im ita tio n s o f the Study .......................................................... Research Questions ..................................................................... Organization o f Subsequent Chapters ................................... 1 6 6 7 9 9 11 RELATED LITERATURE ..................................................................... 12 Introd uctio n . . . . . .............................................................. Who Are the A dult R e a d e rs ...................................................... What Do Adults R e a d .................................................................. The Reading o f F ic tio n and N o n -F ic tio n ............................... Why Do Adults R ead.......................................... Chapter Summary—The E ld erly R e a d e r ................................... 12 12 20 20 24 28 METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY.......................................................... 29 Introd uctio n ................................................................................. Selection o f the P o p u la t io n .................................................. Selection o f the S a m p le .......................................................... P rocedures..................................................................................... Phase I : The Survey Q u e s tio n n a ire ....................................... Phase I I : The Group I n t e r v ie w s ...................................... . Method o f Reporting Results .................................................. Sum m ary......................................................................................... 29 29 30 30 30 32 33 33 PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF D A T A ....................................... 35 Research Questions ..................................................................... Summary o f Sources o f Books . . . ....................................... Summary o f Frequency o f Public L ib ra ry Use ....................... Summary P ertinent to the Presence o f Absence or Reading Rooms in the Homes.................................................................. Summary fo r Knowledge and Use o f Large-P rint Books . . . Interview Q u e s tio n s ...................................... Summary o f Interview Questions .............................................. 35 59 62 v 65 68 91 94 Chapter V. Page CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................... 95 In tro d u ctio n ..................................................................................... Major Results and D is c u s s io n s .................................................. Im plications . ............................................................................. Recommendations fo r Further Research ....................................... 95 95 103 105 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................. 106 APPENDICES.................................................................................................... 112 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1. 4.2. 4.3. 4.4. Page Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and v a rie ty in r e a d in g .......................... ................................................................. 36 Categories o f books and the number o f respondents who read in each c a te g o ry .................................... 37 Topics o f magazines and the number o f respondents who read in eachcategory ................................. 38 Parts o f the newspaper and the number o f respondents who readeach p a rt o f the newspaper.................. 38 4.5. V a riety in reading and age and e d u c a t io n ........................... 40 4.6. V a rie ty in reading between males and females. . . . . . . 41 4.7. V a riety in reading across occupational groups .................. 42 4.8. V a riety in reading across m a rita l status groups ................ 43 4.9. Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and age and education ......................................................................... 45 Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading across occupational groups ................................................................ 46 Mean ages o f persons using various sources to obtain b o o k s ................................................................................................. 48 Mean years o f education using various sources to obtain books ................................................................................. 49 4.10. 4.11. 4.12. 4.13. Sex o f respondents and purchase from the s t o r e ................. 50 4.14. Sex o f respondents and book m ailing from public l i b r a r y ............................................................................................. 51 4.15. Sex o f respondents and borrowing from f r ie n d s .................... 51 4.16. Sex o f respondents and g i f t s ................................................... 52 4.17. Sex o f respondents and book c l u b ............................................ 52 v ii Table 4.18. Page Former occupation o f respondents and purchase from a s t o r e ................................................................................. 53 Former occupation o f respondents and v i s i t to the p u b lic l i b r a r y ...................................................................... 53 4.20. Former occupation o f respondents and book c a rt use . . . 54 4.21. Former occupation o f the respondents and borrowing from frie n d s . . . . . . .......................................................... 55 Former occupation o f the respondents and g if t s ............... 55 4.23. M arital status and purchase from the s t o r e ........................ 56 ................. 57 4.25. M arita l status and borrowing from frie n d s ............................ 58 4.26. M arita l status and g i f t s ........................................................... 58 4.27. . . 60 4.28. Frequency o f 1ib ra ry use by s e x ................................................ 61 ................. 62 4.19. 4.22. 4.24. M arita l status and book c a rt service Use o f pu blic lib r a r y services and age and education 4.29. Frequency o f 1ib ra ry use and occupation groups 4.30. Reading room in each o f the eleven homes fo r the a g e d .......................................... 63 4.31. Knowledge o f la rg e -p rin t books w ith in each home ............... 66 4.32. Use o f la rg e -p rin t books and occupation groups ............... 67 4.33. Periods o f in te nsive reading (6-10 years) between males and fe m a le s ......................................................................... 69 Periods o f intensive reading (11-14 years) between males and fe m a le s .......................................................................... 69 Periods o f in tensive reading (15-20 years) between males and fe m a le s .......................................................................... 70 Summarized data concerning periods o f in te nsive reading between males and females ........................................... 70 Mean years o f education and periods o f in te nsive reading . ..................................................................................... 71 Periods o f in te nsive reading (15-20 years) and past lo ca tio n o f residence .................................................................. 72 4.34. 4.35. 4.36. 4.37. 4.38. v iii Table 4.39. Periods o f in te nsive reading (41-64 years) and past lo catio n o f residence .................................................................. 73 Periods o f in te n sive reading (65 years or o ld e r) and past lo ca tio n o f residence ...................................................... 73 Recognized therapeutic value o f reading and age and education ......................................................................................... 75 Recognized therapeutic value o f reading and occupation groups ......................................................................... 76 4.43. Mean ages and purposes fo r reading . . . ........................... 78 4.44. Education and purposes fo r reading ....................................... 79 4.45. Purposes fo r reading—conversation w ith others— fo r males and females .................................................................. 80 Purpose fo r reading—re la te d to a hobby—and m arital status .............................................. ... ........................ 81 Purposes fo r reading—helped to provide inform ation concerning the p ra c tic a l demands o f d a ily 1iv in g . . . . 82 Mean ages o f the respondents and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading ...................................................................... 85 Mean years o f education and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading ................. . .............................................. 86 Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading— large-type m aterials not avai 1able—between males and f e m a le s ........................... 86 Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—other social a c t iv it ie s —between males and females ................................... 87 Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—other reasons— between males and females .......................................................... 87 Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—e.ye problems--and occupation groups .......................................................................... 88 Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—get too sleepy— and occupation groups .................................................................. 89 Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—other reasons— and occupation groups .................................................................. 89 4.40. 4.41. 4.42. 4.46. 4.47. 4.48. 4.49. 4.50. 4.51. 4.52. 4.53. 4.54. 4.55. ix Table 4.56. 4.57. Page Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—other social a c t iv it ie s —and m a rita l status g ro u p s .................................... 90 ................................ 93 In te re s t more olde r persons in reading CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM Background The lite r a tu r e s p e c ific to the reading behaviors o f the a d u lt reader presents two related problems. F ir s t, previous research f a ils to pursue the p o s s ib ility th a t the older reader may not share many t r a it s c h a ra c te ris tic o f the younger a d u lt reader. Second, le is u re -tim e reading is an important fa c to r in the liv e s o f the older person. The degree o f importance is obscured by a lack of research p e rtin e n t to o ld e r persons as a separately defined population. Asheim and Gray and Rogers in reviewing the lite r a tu r e con­ cerning the a d u lt reader, e sta b lish variables th a t provide a p r o file o f a d u lt reading behavior. The w rite rs consider education as a p r i­ mary determinant in the reading behavior o f the adult reader. Asheim w rite s : We know th a t education is the most important influence on reading behavior no matter what the sex, age or economic status o f the reader; we know th a t younger adults read more than older ones; we know th a t the upper middle income group read more than the lower income groups. No m atter how the question has been approached, the same general fin d in g s have re su lte d , and we can state w ith some c e rta in ty th a t our general p ic tu re o f the reader is a r e lia b le one.l \ e s t e r E. Asheim, "Research in Mass Communication and A dult Reading," L ib ra ry Trends, VI (October, 1957), p. 133. 1 2 S im ila rly , Gray and Rogers emphasize the importance o f edu­ cation on the reading behavior o f the ad ult reader. Gray and Rogers sta te : To a marked e xte n t, other c h a ra c te ris tic s o f in d iv id u a ls which appear to influence th e ir reading behavior and responses are c le a rly related to th e ir educational sta tu s. I t seems v a lid , th e re fo re , to attach most importance to education as an index both o f status in the social stru c tu re and o f reading behavior.2 The educational generalizations o f Asheim and Gray and Rogers raise some important issues concerning the reading behavior o f persons s ix ty - fiv e years or o ld e r. An in te rp re ta tio n o f data c le a rly id e n ti­ fie s the older a d u lt as having 1im ited education. Baltes and Schaie in d ica te th a t in 1970 only 29.3 percent o f the aged were educated 3 through high school or beyond. Ecklund contends th a t almost 70 per­ cent o f the older population have no more than an eighth-grade educa­ tio n .^ I f the importance o f education as a determinant o f reading behavior is c o rre c t, i t can be lo g ic a lly concluded th a t persons who are presently s ix ty - fiv e years or older would not consider reading as an important le is u re -tim e a c t iv ity . Some evidence, however, seems to in d ica te th a t the g e n e ra lizations concerning the importance o f education does need c la r if ic a tio n when applied to the reader who is s ix ty - fiv e years or o ld e r. (Chicago: For ^W illiam S. Gray and Bernice Rogers, M atu rity In Reading The U n ive rsity o f Chicago Press, 1956), p. 45. ^Paul B. Baltes and K. Warner Schaie, Life-Span Develop­ mental Psychology (New York: Academic Press, 1973), p. 313. ^Lowell Ecklund, "Aging and the F ield o f Education," in Aging and S ociety, Vol. I I : Aging and the Professions, ed. by M. W. R iley (New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1969), p. 328. 3 example, Riley reports th a t more than 80 percent o f people over 65 years have on the average more than 5 le is u re hours on weekdays and 5 6.5 hours on weekends and holidays. F urthe r, a survey o f 5,000 non­ in s titu tio n a liz e d adults re fle c ts th a t the age group o f those over 60 years o f age read more books and magazines than does a group from 4060 y e a rs.6 Reading, an e s s e n tia lly sedentary a c t iv it y , increases as a le isu re -tim e a c t iv ity as persons grow o ld e r. S im ila rly , Clark concludes th a t reading is an im portant entertainm ent and diversion a c t iv ity fo r older persons. 8 The McElroy and Link and Hopf studies provide addition al support fo r the contention th a t the reading behavior o f older persons needs fu rth e r c la r if ic a tio n . Both studies ra is e some important ques­ tio n s th a t were never answered by research follow -up probes. MeElroy found th a t persons s ix ty - fiv e years or older tend to read w ith more v a rie ty than younger people. McElroy ra tio n a liz e s the increase as being due to the small number o f persons studied and a few percentage points o f d iffe re n ce from other groups in the study may g not be s ig n ific a n t. McElroy's study poses an important research 5M atilda White R ile y , Aging and S o ciety, Vol. I , An Inventory o f Research Findings (New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1968), p. 512. 6I b id . , p. 516. 7I b id . , p. 517. Q Margaret C lark, Culture and Aging: An Anthropological Study o f Older Americans (S p rin g fie ld : Charles H. Thomas Publishing, 1967), p. 211, E liz a b e th W. McElroy, "Subject V a rie ty in Adult Reading: I . Factors Related to V a rie ty in Reading," L ib ra ry Q u a rte rly, XXXVIII ( A p r il, 1968), pp. 161-162. question. Would more s ig n ific a n t differences be found i f a la rg e r and more c le a rly defined population o f older persons were studied? I t is an in te re s tin g fa c t th a t Asheim and Gray and Rogers c ite the Link and Hopf study as a p a rtia l basis fo r e sta blishing c h a ra c te ris tic s o f a d u lt reading b e h a v io r.^ A careful reading of the Link and Hopf study, however, reveals th a t there was a s lig h t increase in book reading fo r a ctive readers a t age s ix ty and o v e r.^ Link and Hopf did not conduct a follow -up study to probe some o f the influencing fa c to rs s p e c ific to th a t increase. unanswered, Again, the important question is Would a d d itio n a l research provide s ig n ific a n t in sig h ts in to the reading behavior o f persons s ix ty - fiv e years or older? Do persons over s ix ty - fiv e years form a d is tin c t subgroup to which the p r o f ile o f the a d u lt reader in general does not apply? In a d d itio n to the unanswered questions posed by previous stu d ie s, more research s p e c ific to persons s ix ty - fiv e or old e r is needed. Kanner w rite s th a t 1if e patterns often change fo r persons at about age s ix t y - f iv e . The changes involve new s o c ia l, p h y s io lo g ic a l, and psychological problems, I t is assumed th a t reading a c t iv itie s can c o n trib u te in helping olde r persons adjust to changes in th e ir r e t ir e ­ ment years. Kanner re ite ra te s th a t there has been l i t t l e systematic Asheim, "Communication and A dult Reading," p. 133. See a ls o , W illiam S. Gray and Bernice Rogers, M a tu rity in Reading, (Chicago: The U n ive rsity o f Chicago PressT 1956), pp. 21-44. Both siources re fe r to the Link and Hopf study as in d ic a tiv e o f the impor­ tance o f education on reading behaviors. 11 Henry C. Link and Harry A. Hopf, People and Books (New York: Book Manufacturers' In s t it u t e , 1946), p. 62 (see c h a rt). 5 in v e s tig a tio n o f the reading in te re s ts o f older persons. There is strong evidence o f the importance o f reading in f u l f i l l i n g a need fo r the older person seeking entertainm ent, knowledge, the s a tis fa c tio n o f in te lle c tu a l c u r io s ity , c u ltu ra l development, and companionship. 17 A documentary re p o rt o f the National Survey o f Libra ry Services to the Aging fa ile d to include an evaluation o f reading in ­ te re sts and the extent o f lib r a r y use by the older reader. Although an attempt was made to id e n tify research on needs and reading in te re s ts o f the aging, i t was found th a t there were no cu rre n t, comprehensive or systematic studies o f the needs o f users and nonusers o f the 1ib ra ry service among olde r in d iv id u a ls . The re p o rt suggests fu rth e r research on the aging person's estimate o f his own 1ib ra ry needs and desires. 13 The American Libra ry A ssociation, in planning fo r the 1971 White House Conference on Aging, requested Wayne State U n iv e rs ity 's Department o f L ib ra ry Science to conduct a survey o f services to the aged in several c it ie s w ith a c tiv e programs. The study recommended th a t more data are needed concerning the effectiveness o f lib ra ry services to the aging. A lso, there is a need fo r more research in the areas o f reading in te re s ts and inform ation needs o f the aged. lim ita tio n o f the study bears mentioning. A Only users o f the lib r a ry 12 E ll io t E. Kanner, "The Impact o f Gerontological Concepts on P rin cip le s o f L ib ra ria n s h ip ," (unpublished Ph.D. d is s e rta tio n , U n ive rsity o f Wisconsin, 1972), p. 57. 13 U.S. Department o f Health, Education and W elfare, O ffice o f Education, Bureau o f L ib ra rie s and Educational Technology, National Survey o f L ib ra ry Services to the Aging, Washington, D.C., (1971')’, pp. 1-5. A lso, see Phawe I I , 1972, pp. 28-29. Also, a c ita tio n by Dorothy.Romani, "Reading In te re sts and Needs o f Older People," L ib ra ry Trends, XXI (January, 1973), p. 399. 6 were interviewed. An inference can be made, th e re fo re , th a t more research is required concerning the reading needs o f nonusers o f lib r a r y services. User and nonuser reading needs may be d if f e r e n t . ^ In conclusion, the w rite rs previously c ite d in d ica te th a t more research is needed concerning the reading behaviors o f persons s ix ty - fiv e years or o ld e r. Unanswered questions and paucity of re ­ search p e rtin e n t to the older reader, prevent firm conclusions concerning the reading p r o file of th a t group a t the present time. Statement o f Purpose The purpose o f th is study is to ob tain , analyze, and compare data regarding the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f persons liv in g w ith in Homes fo r the Aged in Kent County, Michigan. More s p e c ific a lly , the purpose is to : 1. id e n tify the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors w ith in the spe cifie d lim its o f the research questions, and 2. determine the re la tio n s h ip between the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors and age, education, sex, former occupation, and m arital status o f the respondents. Assumptions 1. The reading behaviors o f olde r persons can be more c le a rly id e n tifie d when such a group is selected and studied separately. ^Genevieve M. Casey, "P ublic L ib ra ry Service to the Aging," American L ib ra rie s , I I (October, 1971), pp. 999-1104. 7 2. The id e n tifie d reading behaviors o f the aged require special lib r a r y services th a t motivate a continued in te re s t in reading. 3. Reading is an important social o u tle t th a t permits the older reader to f u l f i l l such needs as seeking entertainm ent, knowledge, s p ir itu a l s a tis fa c tio n , c u ltu ra l development, and companionship. 4. Reading s p e c ia lis ts and lib ra ria n s can incorporate modern gerontological concepts in to programs th a t present reading as a v ia b le and meaningful a c t iv ity fo r olde r persons. D e fin itio n o f Terms The reader may b e tte r understand th is study i f ce rta in terms are i n i t i a l l y c la r if ie d . Leisure-tim e Reading Behaviors Leisure-tim e reading behaviors are defined as acts s p e c ific to reading books, magazines and newspapers during recreational periods o f the day. Homes fo r the Aged Homes fo r the Aged are defined as those establishments or in s titu tio n s other than h o s p ita ls , hotels or nursing homes which pro­ vide room and board to no n-transient unemployed in d ivid u a ls 65 years or o ld e r. V a rie ty in Reading V ariety in reading is defined as a frequency count o f d i f ­ fe re n t categories of books, d iffe r e n t kinds o f magazine a r tic le s , and the d iffe re n t parts o f the newspaper read during le is u re -tim e . Time Spent in Leisure-tim e Reading Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading is defined as the number o f hours, or fra c tio n s th e re o f, which are used reading books, maga­ zines, or newspapers during recreational periods. Use o f L ib ra ry Services The use o f lib r a r y services is defined as the knowledge o f lib r a r y services provided in Homes fo r the Aged and the use to which th is knowledge is put in obtaining lib r a r y services. Intensive Reading Intensive reading is defined as periods o f time id e n tifie d by each respondent during which most reading takes place. Therapeutic Value o f Reading The therapeutic value o f reading as id e n tifie d by a respond­ ent w ill be construed as th a t which re lie ve s psychological tensions, helps to solve problems, or helps respondents fe e l b e tte r about themselves. 9 Purposes fo r Reading Purposes fo r reading are defined as the expressed reasons fo r reading a s p e c ific book or magazine a r t ic le by respondents during the past year. R estricted Reading R estricted reading is defined as the s u b je c tiv e ly expressed explanations by each respondent fo r not spending more time reading during le is u re -tim e . L im ita tio n s o f the Study This study is a survey o f the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f persons s ix ty - fiv e or olde r liv in g w ith in Homes fo r the Aged in Kent County, Michigan. The respondents surveyed w ill be selected at random from the to ta l population in those homes. The le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f those selected w ill be measured by a Reading Survey questionnaire. No attempt w ill be made to generalize beyond the population o f th is study. The in v e s tig a to r concedes th a t the responses disclosed w i ll be reported as perceived responses and not o f fa c t. Research Questions I f the reading behaviors o f persons liv in g in Homes fo r the Aged are to be recognized and understood, the fo llo w in g research questions should be considered: 10 1. Is the v a rie ty in reading related to the amount o f time spent in le is u re -tim e reading? 2. Is the v a rie ty in reading related to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m arita l status o f the respondents? 3. Is the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading related to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m arital status o f the respond­ ents? 4. Is the use o f lib r a r y services related to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m arita l status o f 5. the respondents? Are periods o f in te nsive reading related to sex, education, and past lo ca tio n o f residence o f the respondents? 6. Is the recognized therapeutic value o f reading related to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m arital status o f respondents? 7. Are purposes fo r reading related to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l status o f respondents? 8. Are reasons fo r re s tric te d reading related to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l status o f respondents? The answers to the research questions posed in the present study w ill enable ad m inistrators o f Homes fo r the Aged, 1ib ra ria n s , and reading s p e c ia lis ts to: 1. B etter recognize the s p e c ific le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f persons 1iv in g in Homes fo r the Aged. 2. B etter understand the ro le o f reading in the liv e s o f persons liv in g w ith in Homes fo r the Aged. 3. A ssist those concerned w ith meeting the le is u re -tim e reading needs and in te re s ts o f persons iri Homes fo r the Aged to be more e ffe c ­ tiv e in planning reading programs based on assessed inform ation. 11 Organization o f Subsequent Chapters The content o f Chapter I has included a background fo r the study, purpose o f the study, d e fin itio n o f terms, research hypotheses, methodology and organization o f subsequent chapters. In Chapter I I a review o f the lite r a tu r e related to the study is presented. I t includes a discussion o f the reading behaviors o f adults s p e c ific to reading books, magazines, newspapers, and pur­ poses fo r reading. Chapter I I I comprises a de scrip tion o f the methodology used in the study. The sample w ill be a simple random selection o f persons liv in g w ith in eleven Homes fo r the Aged in Kent County, Michigan. Chapter IV organizes, analyzes, and presents the data and fin d in g s o f the study. Chapter V presents the conclusions and recommendations o f the study as based on the fin d in g s . CHAPTER I I RELATED LITERATURE In tro d u ctio n The research needs id e n tifie d in the preceding chapter es­ ta b lis h the older reader as a d is tin c t group fo r fu rth e r study. problem a ris e s , however, in a review o f the lite r a tu r e . A Research studies dealing e xclu sive ly w ith persons s ix t y - f iv e years or olde r are v ir t u a lly nonexistent. 15 Therefore, the present review o f the l i t e r a ­ ture w ill concentrate on the a d u lt reader ra th e r than the aged reader only. S p e cific references w ill be included pe rtain in g to the reading behaviors o f the aged when research data e x is t. The lite r a tu r e fo r the present study w ill deal w ith a d u lt book and p e rio d ica l reading behavior. Three major questions w ill be considered: 1. Who are the a d u lt readers? 2. What do adults read? 3. Why do adults read? Who Are the A dult Readers? Research id e n tify in g the a d u lt reader is d e s c rip tiv e in nature. The researchers describe respondents by making re la tio n s h ip s I r Kanner, "G erontological Concepts on L ib ra ria n s h ip ," p. 111. Kanner's study is the most recent review o f the lite r a tu r e s p e c ific to studies on reading behaviors o f the aged. 12 13 between reading behavior and demographic c h a ra c te ris tic s such as education, age, and socio-economic status. Educational C h a ra cte ristics Studies e s ta b lis h a c o rre la tio n between formal education and reading behavior. The re la tio n s h ip applies to the reading o f books and p e rio d ic a ls . Link and Hopf reported in a study o f 4,000 persons th a t formal education was the most s ig n ific a n t influence on ad ult book r e a d in g .^ S im ila rly , Berelson's study o f 1,151 adults and McElroy's research on the reading preferences o f 712 adults substan­ tia te d the importance o f education on reading b e h a v io r.^ A dult reading o f p e rio d ica ls also re la te s to educational attainm ent. Schramm and White in a study o f 746 adults found th a t readers w ith less education used the newspaper fo r entertainm ent, sensational news, and p ic to r ia l content. 18 In c o n tra st, the more h ig h ly educated reader read the newspapers fo r inform ation on public iq a f f a ir s . Bogart's study o f 1,991 adults fu rth e r indicated th a t York: ^^Henry C. Link and Harry A. Hopf, People and Books Book M anufacturer's I n s titu te , 1946), pp. 158-160. (New ^B ernard Berelson, The L ib ra ry 's Public (New York: Columbia U n iv e rs ity , 1950), pp. ix - x , 49-50; Elizabeth McElroy, "Subject V ariety in A dult Reading: Phase I , Factors Related to V a riety in Reading," L ib ra ry Q u a rte rly , XXXVIII ( A p r il, 1968), p. 154. ^ W ilb u r Schramm and David M. White, "Age, Education, and the Economic Status as Factors in Newspaper Reading," in Mass Communic a tio n , ed. by W ilbur Schramm (Urbana: U n ive rsity o f I lli n o is Press, 1949), pp. 402-405. ^Ibid. 14 b e tte r educated readers were more apt to obtain news from more than one medium and they re lie d more on newspapers. 20 Factors o f education also interested Lazarfeld and Kendall 21 in a reported survey o f 3,529 a d u lts. The researchers found th a t as the le ve l o f formal education declined, so did the readership o f magazines. 22 Nearly a ll college graduates reported they were regular readers o f magazines and less than h a lf o f the respondents w ith a grade school education could make a s im ila r response. 23 Age C h ara cte ristics Age facto rs present a complex and con trad ictory p ic tu re p e rtin e n t to ad ult reading behavior. read more than older a d u lts. 24 agree w ith some other studies. Asheim w rite s th a t younger adults That ge n e ra liza tio n , however, does not Opinion Research Corporation conducted a survey of 5,000 adults and found th a t, although younger readers did read more books, there was an upturn in the reading o f books fo r those 20 Leo Bogart, "Changing News In te re sts and the News Media," P ublic Opinion Q ua rte rly, XXXII (1968-1969), pp. 560-562. 21 Paul F. Lazarfeld and P a tric ia Kendall, Radio Listening in America (New York: P re n tic e -H a ll, 1948), pp. 1-10. The reader is also re fe rre d to Appendix B fo r sample d e scrip tio n . See also Paul F. La zarfe ld, Radio and the P rinted Page (New York: D u e ll, Sloan, and Pearce, 1940), p. 136. 22I b id . 23Ib id . 24 Asheim, "Mass Communication and A dult Reading," p. 133. 15 over age s ix ty . 25 Also, Lyman reported th a t, w hile younger people read more books than persons f o r t y - fiv e years or o ld e r, a ctive readers in the olde r age groups read more than the younger respondents. 2fi Two other studies create more questions about the re la tio n ­ ship o f age and reading behavior. Link and Hopf stated there was a decrease in book reading w ith an increase in age. 27 Yet, an examina­ tio n o f the data in th a t study shows an increase in book reading a t age s ix ty and over. 28 McElroy concluded th a t the proportion o f readers in each age group generally declined w ith an increase in age. 29 The researcher stated, however, there was a s iig h t tendency fo r persons s ix ty years and olde r to read w ith more v a rie ty than younger readers. 30 Studies pe rtain in g to a d u lt p e rio d ica l reading re in fo rc e the conclusion th a t younger readers read more. Lyman found magazine readership greatest in the age group from sixteen to t h ir t y - f o u r . Magazine readership decreased w ith a proportionate increase in age. 31 Wade and Schramm s im ila rly found a decrease in magazine readership OC W ilbur Schramm, "Aging and Mass Communication," in Aging and S ociety, Vol. I I , Aging and the Professions, ed. by M atilda White R iley (New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1969), pp. 360-361. ^H elen H. Lyman, L ib ra ry M aterials in Service to the Adult New Reader (Chicago: American L ib ra ry A ssociation, 1973), p. 285. ^ L in k and Hopf, People and Books, pp. 62-63. po Ib id . See the chart which presents the research data. ^M cE lroy, "V a rie ty in Reading," pp. 161-167. 3QI b id . Lyman, A dult New Reader, pp. 267-268. 16 among persons s ix ty years and o ld e r. 3? Larson's d e scrip tio n o f the newspaper c irc u la tio n struggle between Paddock P ublications and F ield Enterprises c le a rly favored the younger reader over the e ld e rly reader as a newspaper consumer. 33 The preceding studies include the older reader as pa rt o f the a d u lt reader in general. Such research can tend to obscure the exact reading behavior of the e ld e rly reader which might be b e tte r studied as a separate group. Some such studies fo llo w . Beyer and Woods conducted a survey o f 5,202 e ld e rly persons and found reading to be an important le is u re time a c t iv ity . 34 Approxi­ mately 60 percent o f them reported reading something during the pre­ vious day. The actual time spent on reading a c tiv itie s va rie d , but about h a lf o f the respondents devoted an hour per day to reading 35 a c t iv itie s . Buswell in a study o f 700 e ld e rly veterans indicated th a t book reading was a major le is u re time a c t iv ity fo r the veterans. 36 Schramm studied the interview s o f 5,000 social se cu rity b e n e fic ia rie s 32 Serena Wade and W ilbur Schramm, "The Mass Media As Sources o f Public A ffa ir s , Science, and Health Knowledge," Public Opinion Q u a rte rly, XXXIII (1969), p. 199. 33Carl M. Larson, "The Struggle o f Paddock P ublications Versus F ield E nterprises, In c .," Journalism Q u a rte rly, XXXXVIII (W inter, 1971), pp. 700-706. ^G lenn H. Beyer, Housing and Society (New York: Company, 1945), p. 417. MacMillan 35I b id . , p. 424. Beyer did not, however, d e ta il the types o f reading completed, ( i . e . , books, magazines, and newspapers). Aged," 3®Christa H. Buswell, "Our Other Customers; Reading and the Wilson L ib ra ry B u lle tin , XXXXV (January, 1971), pp. 471-472. 17 and stated, . . almost 45 percent o f a l l le is u re hours a va ila b le to these old people were spent on media a c t iv it ie s —te le v is io n , read37 in g, ra d io , and records." Determining the importance o f magazines and newspaper read­ ing was the purpose o f Schramm's study, which involved 925 members o f 38 a senior c itiz e n s ' club. More than 80 percent o f the aged read a newspaper every day or nearly every day. 39 average o f three magazines re g u la rly . The respondents also read an Socio-economi c Characteri s tie s Another area o f research has involved socio-economic char­ a c te ris tic s and ad ult reading. The discussion w i ll focus on books, newspapers, and magazine reading. Pei 1 studied 1ib ra ry use by n in e ty -e ig h t mothers who 1ived in a 1ow-income area o f Chicago.48 Results o f the study demonstrated a re la tio n s h ip between 1ib ra ry use and personal reading ha bits. The mothers who used the 1ib ra ry read more books than those who did not. Further, mothers t h ir t y years o f age were more lik e ly to use the 1ib ra ry than mothers who were older or younger than t h i r t y . 4^ The reasons fo r th a t behavior were not determined. 37 Wilbur Schramm, "Aging and Mass Communication," in Aging and S ociety, Vol. I I , Aging and the Professions, ed. by M atilda White R iley (New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1969), pp. 360-361. 38I b id . , pp. 363-364. 40 Margaret P e il, "L ib ra ry Use o f Low-Income Chicago F a m ilie s," Libra ry Q u a rte rly, XXXIII (October, 1963), p. 329. 41 Ib id . , p. 333. 18 Berelson also determined a re la tio n s h ip between lib r a r y use and socio-economic s ta tu s .42 The researcher completed an analysis o f 43 studies s p e c ific to lib r a r y use and users published since 1930. The study concluded th a t the lib r a r y tended to serve the middle class, defined e ith e r by occupation or by economic sta tu s , more than e ith e r the upper or lower social classes.44 Berelson contended th a t the 45 lib r a r y , as a source o f in fo rm a tio n , did not serve most people. Lyman and McElroy found a c o rre la tio n between reading be­ havior and occupations. Lyman indicated th a t persons in c le ric a l and service occupations were book readers.4^ McElroy stated th a t readers w ith higher incomes read more than those w ith lower incomes. time women workers read more than housewives. P art- Also, persons over age s ix ty - fiv e who worked read w ith more v a rie ty than in d iv id u a ls o f the same age who re tire d . 48 Other studies also re la te d economic s ta tu s , race, and occupa­ tio n a l status to reading behaviors. Schramm and White reported an increase in the reading o f sports and society news by readers w ith a 42Berelson, L ib ra ry 's P u b lic , pp. 49-50. 43Ib id . , pp. ix -x 44I b id . , pp. 49-50. 43I b id . , p. 18. 46Lyman, Adult New Reader, p. 285. 47McElroy, "V a rie ty in Reading," pp. 161-167. 19 higher economic status.^® Bogart s im ila r ly found th a t persons w ith higher incomes showed the strongest o rie n ta tio n to newspapers. Lyman stated a higher percentage o f white readers read newspapers d a ily and more Black readers read newspapers a few times a week. Lyman fu rth e r indicated th a t re tire d persons and those readers in blue c o lla r occupations read magazines less than in d iv id u a ls in other occu­ p a tio n s.^2 Summary The present review o f studies considered the re la tio n s h ip o f a d u lt reading behavior to education, age, and socio-economic sta tu s. Education clo se ly correlated to a d u lt reading behavior no m atter what the age or socio-economic status o f the reader in dicated . Persons in the higher income groups read more than persons in the lower income le v e ls . Although studies comparing age and q u a n tity o f reading gen­ e r a lly found th a t younger readers read more, studies concentrating on the e ld e rly did fin d th a t these persons devote large amounts o f le is u re time to reading. The exact nature or c h a ra c te ris tic s o f th a t reading behavior is not c le a rly d e ta ile d . Therefore, ge neralizations concern­ ing the c h a ra c te ris tic s o f the e ld e rly reader, studies as a separate social group, are not possible from these studies. 49 Schramm and White, "Factors in Newspaper Reading," pp. 404-405. cn Bogart, "In te re s ts and News Media," p. 573. ^Lyman, A dult New Readers, pp. 243-244. 52I b id . , pp. 267-268. 20 What Do A dults Read? L ite ra tu re concerning the types o f books read by adults concentrates on the areas o f f ic t io n and n o n -fic tio n . The research emphasis on p e rio dica l reading pertains to newspaper and magazine to p ics. Although great d iv e rs ity in a d u lt reading e x is ts , there are reading trends th a t research id e n tifie s s p e c ific to a d u lt reading behavior. The Reading o f F ic tio n and Non-Fiction The reading o f f o f e . ' . ^ s a d u lt reading. Link a high proportion o f k>8 ad ult sample read f fic t io n . percent o f th e ir -ercent who read non- Lyman respondents. C4 110 t i t l e s . ' es reported by F ic t! m n -fic tio n represented Lyman s to rie s , novels, biog'v enjoyed reading short ' ..-lections. Plays, s c ie n tific w ritin g and essays weTT'Teast popular w ith the respondents. Pei 1 also reported th a t the low-income women preferred reading murder mysteries. Berelson compared lib r a r y c lie n te le w ith the types o f books 57 c irc u la te d . Women borrowed s lig h t ly more lig h t f ic t io n than men. 6? Link and Hopf, People and Books, p. 71. ^Lyman, Adult New Reader, p. 286. 55Ib id . , p. 287. ^ P e i l » "Low Income F a m ilie s," p. 331. ^B e re lso n , L ib ra ry 's P u b lic , pp. 68-69. 56 22 Ja ve lin reported a survey o f e ld e rly readers completed by 65 the Boston Public L ib ra ry during 1967. Results o f the s t y # th a t senior c itiz e n s read m ysteries, lig h t romantic novels, * recent f ic t io n , nature and animal s to rie s , and tra v e l r» older readers indicated le a s t in te re s t in books o f humor, r e lig io n , poetry, the c la s s ic s , cu rre n t events, and p o litic s . ft ft Busws o f e ld e rly m ilita r y veterans in an in s titu tio n a liz e d settlnc correlated w ith J a v e lin 's re p o rt in these fin d in g s . cy Blakely states th a t e ld e rly users o f lib r a r y services Q Milwaukee preferred m ysteries, westerns and gothic novel s . ^ The oI m r readers also requested such books as Portnoy1s Complaint, Oh C a lcu tta , and 'Everything'That You Wanted"to Know About Sex But Were Af r aid sc Ask. 'In addition,- o ld e r persons requested'n o n -fic tio n books c o n c e r n i n g biographies, tr a v e l, and h a n d ic ra ft.69 D e lva lle , in a study of tc»e aged in a nursing home environment, found s im ila r re s u lts . Del I t respondents were, however, le a s t in te reste d in books pertaining to nature, r e lig io n , sp o rts, westerns, and science f i c t i o n , 7u CC Muriel C. J a v e lin , "Services to the Senior C itiz e n ," American L ib ra rie s , I (February, 1970), p. 133. 66Ib id . ^ B u s w e ll, "Reading and Aged," pp. 472-473. 66Darlene B la kely, "Milwaukee L ib ra ry Goes to the E ld e rly ,* Wisconsin L ib ra ry B u lle tin , LXVI (J u ly , 1970), p. 210. 69Ib id . ^6June D e lv a lle , DuIcy B. M ille r , and Mary Saldicco, Read­ ing Patterns o f the Aged in a Nursing Home Environment," Association o f Hospital and In s titu tio n L ib ra rie s Q u a rte rly, VI (W inter, 1966), pp. 8-11. r 20 What Do Adults Read? L ite ra tu re concerning the types o f books read by adults concentrates on the areas o f f ic t io n and n o n -fic tio n . The research emphasis on p e rio d ica l reading pertains to newspaper and magazine to p ic s . Although great d iv e rs ity in a d u lt reading e x is ts , there are reading trends th a t research id e n tifie s s p e c ific to a d u lt reading behavior. The Reading o f F ic tio n and Non-Fiction The reading o f f ic t io n co n stitu te s a high proportion o f a d u lt reading. Link and Hopf determined th a t 58 percent o f th e ir a d u lt sample read f ic t io n as contrasted w ith 37 percent who read nonf ic t io n . 53 Lyman c la s s ifie d a series o f book t i t l e s reported by respondents. 110 t i t l e s . F ic tio n represented 167 t i t l e s and n o n -fic tio n represented 54 Lyman fu rth e r stated th a t adults enjoyed reading short s to rie s , novels, biographies, and h is to ric a l s e le c tio n s . Plays, s c ie n t if ic w ritin g and essays were le a st popular w ith the respondents. P eil also reported th a t the low-income women preferred reading murder rnysteries. 56 Berelson compared lib r a r y c lie n te le w ith the types o f books c irc u la te d . Women borrowed s lig h tly more lig h t f ic t io n than men. ^ \ i n k and Hopf, People and Books, p. 71. 54 Lyman, A dult New Reader, p. 286. 55I b id . , p. 287. ^ P e i l , "Low Income F a m ilie s," p. 331. ^ B e re ls o n , L ib r a r y ^ P u b lic , pp. 68-69. 57 55 21 CO Berelson's observation in McElroy,®® and Lyman.®® 1950 was substantiated by Asheim, In the area o f n o n -fic tio n , Berelson stated th a t men withdrew more books than women. S im ila rly , younger readers 61 borrowed more n o n -fic tio n than o ld e r readers. McElroy's study in dicated a large proportion o f fu ll- tim e workers read science to p ic s . Housewives, persons in the 1owest income groups, and lower educational le ve ls read re lig io u s to p ic s . In con­ t r a s t, high income groups and a la rge proportion o f college graduates read in the social sciences. Respondents who read poetry and plays tended to read c o n s is te n tly and s ta rte d th e ir reading e a rly in 1if e . 6? Austin analyzed data concerning n o n -fic tio n "best s e lle rs " CO from 1912 to 1950. A s t a t is t ic a l summary and ca te g o riza tio n o f books revealed c e rta in subject m atter areas which had a constant appeal to readers. or autobiography. Of the 345 books studied, 22 percent were biography The next most popular categories o f n o n -fic tio n were social problems and s e lf-h e lp books. 64 ®®Asheim, "Mass Communication and A d ult Reading," p. 135. ^ E liz a b e th W. McElroy, "Subject V a rie ty in A d ult Reading: I I C h a ra c te ris tic s o f Readers o f Ten Categories o f Books," L ib ra ry Q u a rte rly , XXXVII (J u ly , 1968), p. 264. ®®Lyman, A dult New Reader, p. 287. 61 Berelson, op. c i t . , p. 69. ®^McElroy, "V a rie ty in A d u lt Reading," p. 268. Trends." 141-143. ®®Garry R. A u stin , "N o n -fic tio n Best S e lle rs : Types and Journal o f Social Psychology, XXXVIII (August, 1953), pp. 64Ib id . 22 Ja ve lin reported a survey o f e ld e rly readers completed by 65 the Boston Public L ib ra ry during 1967. Results o f the study revealed th a t senior c itiz e n s read m ysteries, lig h t romantic novels, biographies, recent f ic t io n , nature and animal s to rie s , and tra v e l adventures. The old e r readers indicated le a s t in te re s t in books o f humor, r e lig io n , poetry, the c la s s ic s , current events, and p o lit ic s . Buswel1 's study o f e ld e rly m ilita r y veterans in an in s titu tio n a liz e d s e ttin g c lo s e ly c o rre la te d w ith J a v e lin 's re p o rt in these fin d in g s.® 7 Blakely states th a t e ld e rly users o f lib r a r y services in Milwaukee preferred m ysteries, westerns and gothic novels. 68 The o ld e r readers also requested such books as Portnoy's Complaint, Oh C a lc u tta , and Everything That You Wanted'to Know About Sex But Mere A fra id to Ask. In a d d itio n , olde r persons re q u e ste d 'n o n -fictio n books concerning biographies, tr a v e l, and ha nd icra ft.® 9 D e lv a lle , in a study o f the aged in a nursing home environment, found s im ila r re s u lts . D e lv a lle 's respondents were, however, le a s t in te re ste d in books p e rta in in g to nature, r e lig io n , s p o rts , westerns, and science f i c t i o n . ^ ®®Muriel C. J a v e lin , "Services to the Senior C itiz e n ," American L ib ra rie s , I (February, 1970), p. 133. ®®Ibid. ®7Buswell, "Reading and Aged," pp. 472-473. ®®Darlene B la kely, "Milwaukee L ib ra ry Goes to the E ld e rly ," Wisconsin L ib ra ry B u lle tin , LXVI (J u ly , 1970), p. 210. 69Ib id . 70June D e lv a lle , DuIcy B. M ille r , and Mary S aldicco, "Read­ ing Patterns o f the Aged in a Nursing Home Environment," A ssociation o f H ospital and In s titu tio n L ib ra rie s Q u a rte rly, VI (W inter, 1966), pp. 8-11. 23 The Reading o f P eriodicals The studies which pe rta in to the reading o f magazines and newspapers examine those p e rio d ica ls as sources fo r in fo rm atio n. For example, Wade and Schramm re p o rt fo u r comparable national surveys con71 cerning pu blic a ffa ir s knowledge. The researchers reported th a t 50 percent o f the respondents re g u la rly read newspapers and 25 percent used magazines fo r inform ation on campaigns, candidates, and issues. 72 Conducting interview s during 1957, researchers found th a t respondents preferred newspapers as the major source fo r science in fo rm atio n. 73 Sources fo r health inform ation were examined in 1958 using 74 a sample o f 762 respondents. The study did not separate newspapers from magazines as separate sources. The p rin te d media, however, were the primary sources fo r health inform ation. 75 more lik e ly to read about health inform ation. F urthe r, women were 76 Summary The studies present a v a rie ty o f books which in te re s t the ad u lt reader. men. F ic tio n is most read and women read more f ic t io n than E ld e rly persons enjoy reading m ysteries, westerns, and oth er ^Wade and Schramm, "Sources o f Public A ffa ir s Knowledge," pp. 197-198. The fo u r surveys were conducted by the Survey Research Center, U n ive rsity o f Michigan during 1952 (N = 1 ,899); 1956 (N = 1,762); 1960 (N = 1,954); and 1964 (N = 1,570). 72I b id . 73I b id . , pp. 201-202. 74I b id . , p. 202. 75Ib id . Sample consisted o f 1,919 respondents. 24 lig h t f ic t io n . Younger readers tend to read more n o n -fic tio n than olde r readers. Biographies and autobiographies are o f greatest in te re s t to n o n -fic tio n readers. F u ll-tim e workers read more science top ics and college graduates p re fe r the social sciences. Housewives and persons w ith lower incomes are most lik e ly to se le ct books on re lig io n . E ld e rly readers do not p re fe r books on p o lit ic s , curre nt events, and re lig io n . Newspapers and magazines provide a major source fo r pu blic a f f a ir s inform ation. newspapers. Science inform ation is obtained p rim a rily from The prin te d media is the primary source fo r health in ­ form ation. Why Do Adults Read? The purposes associated w ith a d u lt reading are extremely im portant. In a sense, purposes fo r reading provide a measure o f the fu n ctio n and s ig n ific a n c e o f reading in the a d u lt's d a ily 1if e . Several fa c to rs , however, in flue nce the a d u lt reader's purposes fo r reading. The fo llo w in g studies examine some o f those fa c to rs . The Amount o f E ffo rt Influences Choice Schramm stated th a t the amount o f e f f o r t required to read i n f 1uenced reading behavior. 77 As such, an a d u lt would choose to read i f the act o f reading was not a d i f f i c u l t task. Schramm fu rth e r ^ W ilb u r Schramm, "Why Adults Read," in A dult Reading: The F if t y - F if t h Yearbook o f the National Society fo r the Study o f Educa­ tio n Part I I , ed. Nelson B. Henry (Chicago: U n iv e rs ity o f Chicago Press, 1956J, p. 67. 25 o u tlin e d fo u r fa cto rs which influenced the e f f o r t to read: (1) the le ve l o f reading s k i l l development; (2) the time a v a ila b le to read; (3) the physical proxim ity o f reading m a te ria ls; and (4) the economic costs associated w ith obtaining reading m a te ria ls. 78 Sharing a s im i­ la r view point, Berelson and Steinberg indicated th a t formal education g re a tly decreased the d i f f ic u lt y o f reading and p o s itiv e ly enhanced a d u lt reading behavior. 79 M otivations Related to Purposes In a d d itio n to e f f o r t , m otivations o f the reader influenced purposes fo r reading. Of) Gray and Munroe wrote th a t motives which in ­ fluenced adults recreational reading were s a tis fa c tio n o f c u r io s itie s , re la x a tio n , emotional s a tis fa c tio n , a sense o f du ty, and to id le away tim e. 81 Lyman stated the reading m otivations fo r o n e -h a lf o f the respondents studied were reading fo r pleasure, re la x a tio n , or in fo r QO mation. Maples, Berelson and Bradshaw concluded th a t the reader's motives fo r reading or the s a tis fa c tio n s expected a ffe cte d the q u a lity OO o f a tte n tio n a p u b lic a tio n received. Bernard Berelson, "The L ib ra ry 's P u b lic ," in A Forum on the P ublic L ib ra ry In q u iry , ed. Lester Asheim (Westport: Greenwood Press, 1970), p. 61. Also re fe r to Heinz Steinberg, "Books and Readers as A Subject o f Research in Europe and America," In te rn a tio n a ] Social Science Jou rna l, XXIV (1972), 751. ^Schramm, "Why Adults Read," pp. 67-68. ^ W illia m S. Gray and Ruth Munroe, The Reading In te re s ts and Habits o f A d u lts , (New York: MacMillan Company, 1929), p. 268. ^Lyman, A dult New Reader, p. 288. QO Douglas Waples, Bernard Berelson and F ranklin R. Bradshaw, "The E ffe cts o f Reading," in Mass Communications, ed. by W ilbur Schramm (Urbana: U n ive rsity o f I lli n o is Press, 1960), p .488. 26 P ersonality T ra its Related to Purpose Schramm contended th a t a re la tio n s h ip existed between person> a l it y t r a it s o f the reader and purposes fo r reading. For example, an a d u lt may read to re in fo rc e e x is tin g a ttitu d e s and opinions. Personal values are also re la te d to a reader's choice o f reading m a te ria ls. S im ila rly , readers who rated high on the F-scale o f a u th o rita ria n ism tended to p re fe r a newspaper which more o fte n sponsored a u th o rita ria n i . . 84 p o lic ie s . Purposes Deduced From E ffects Reading purposes can be deduced from an examination o f reading e ffe c ts . The th e o re tic a l framework re la te d to "reading e ffe c ts " evolved from the "need theory o f p e rs o n a lity " and took in to account three in te rre la te d reading determ iners: (1) the m aterial read; (2) the readers p re d isp o sitio n s; and (3) the observed responses. Researchers lis te d fiv e reading e ffe c ts from which purposes could be deduced: (1) the instrum ental e ffe c t (e .g ., f u l l e r knowledge o f a p ra c tic a l problem and greater competence to deal w ith i t ) ; (2) the pre stige e ffe c t ( e .g ., r e l ie f o f in f e r io r it y fe e lin g by reading what in ­ creases s e lf-a p p ro v a l); (3) the reinforcem ent e ffe c t ( e . g . , re in ­ forcement o f an a ttitu d e or conversion to another a ttitu d e toward co n tro ve rsia l issu es); (4) the a e sth e tic e ffe c t ( e . g . , obtaining a e sth e tic experience from specimens o f 1ite ra r y a r t ; and (5) the re s p ite e ffe c t ( e .g ., fin d in g r e l i e f from tensions by reading whatever o ffe rs pleasant d is tr a c tio n s ) .85 ^Schramm, "Why Adults Read," p. 73. OG Waples, Berelson, and Bradshaw, "E ffe c ts o f Reading," p. 489. See a lso, W illiam S. Gray and Bernice Rogers, M a tu rity in Reading (Chicago: The U n ive rsity o f Chicago Press, 1956), pp. 27-28. 27 Readers Communicate With Society Steinberg posed a fin a l consideration as to why adults read. Readers were not iso la te d people who attempted to escape from so cie ty. Rather, the a d u lt reader sought to communicate w ith so cie ty. 86 Readers wished to communicate t h e ir thoughts to others by means o f conversation because reading was an a c tiv e process. Steinberg wrote: Modern readers in America and in Europe are more communicative in th e ir a c t iv ity and v i t a l i t y than non-readers. They do not read to escape from the w o rld , but to liv e in i t b e tte r. This re a lly puts the main fin d in g o f research in the m atter to date in a nut­ s h e ll. 87 Summary: Why Do Adults Read The amount o f e f f o r t required to read d ir e c tly influenced reading behavior and the choice to read. A lso, such m otivations as a desire fo r in fo rm a tio n , re la x a tio n or pleasure d ir e c tly influenced purposes fo r reading. P e rso na lity t r a it s s im ila r ly are re la te d to purposes fo r reading. Persons w ith an a u th o rita ria n p e rso n a lity tended to read m aterials which contained an a u th o rita ria n view point. From a research standpoint, the "e ffe c ts " o f reading can be used to deduce purposes fo r reading. a c tiv e process. F in a lly , reading was described as an As such, readers tended to communicate w ith society and not to escape from social in te ra c tio n . 88Heinz Steinberg, "Books and Readers As A Subject o f Re­ search in Europe ana America," In te rn a tio n a l Social Science Jou rna l, XXIV (1972), p. 753. 87Ib id . 28 Chapter Summary--The E ld e rly Reader The studies reviewed c le a rly r e f le c t th a t the s p e c ific reading needs and tastes o f persons s ix t y - f iv e years or o ld e r are e s s e n tia lly neglected. Studies tend to study a d u lt readership in general terms and f a i l to view the e ld e rly reader as a special audience. F urther, e a r lie r research studies viewed the e ld e rly reader from a stereotyped perspective. Older persons a lle g e d ly made up a ra th e r sheltered audience, w ith conservative in te re s ts , and not iin­ terested in new thin gs. Studies presented in the present paper d i­ r e c tly or in d ir e c tly suggest th a t research take another look a t the stereotyped p ic tu re . social p a rtic ip a tio n . E ld e rly persons did read and were a c tiv e in The s p e c ific reading behavior and social p a rtic ip a tio n however, s t i l l require study o f the o ld e r person as a special audience. A lack o f systematic research concerning the e ld e rly reader generates a need fo r the present study. Therefore, the purpose o f the present research is to o b ta in , analyze, and compare data regarding the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f persons s ix ty years or o ld e r. CHAPTER I I I METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY In tro d u c tio n This section elaborates on the methodology used in conduct­ ing the study. The population and sample are id e n tifie d and defined. The data gathering procedure is o u tlin e d . The research instrum ent employed w ith it s a d m in istra tio n and s t a t is t ic a l treatm ent is explained. The questionnaire employed was designed by the researcher w ith the assistance and guidance o f educational research consultants and the graduate committee. The questionnaire was unique to th is study. S election o f the Population The population consisted o f 1,165 persons s ix t y - f iv e years o f age or o ld e r, liv in g w ith in eleven Homes fo r the Aged in Kent County, Michigan. The Michigan D ire c to ry o f H o sp ita ls, Nursing Care F a c ilit ie s and Homes fo r the Aged was used to id e n tify addresses fo r each o f the homes. the Homes fo r the Aged and 88 Michigan Department o f P ublic Health, D ire c to ry o f Hospi­ t a ls , Nursing Care F a c ilit ie s , and Homes fo r the Aged (Lansing: Bureau o f Health F a c ilit ie s , 1974), p. 37. 29 30 S election o f the Sample The sample was a simple random sampling o f persons s ix ty fiv e years o r olde r liv in g w ith in each o f the eleven homes. The sample was selected in the fo llo w in g manner: 1. The researcher contacted each a d m in istra to r or program d ire c to r fo r a l i s t o f names o f persons s ix t y - f iv e years o f o ld e r. 2. The names o f a ll persons in the population fo r each home were put in to a container and mixed. 3. Names were then selected u n til 20 percent o f the population w ith in each home was reached. 4. study. The 20 percent o f the names selected was The to ta l number then contacted fo r o f persons selected fo r fu rth e r study was 249. Procedures The study was conducted in two separate phases. phaseconsisted o f the completion The f i r s t o f a survey questionnaire. The second phase involved the use o f group in te rvie w s. Phase I : The Survey Questionnaire The researcher contacted each a d m in is tra to r, or a designated rep rese ntative , fo r permission to conduct the study. The purpose o f the study was explained and procedure questions answered. The researcher was assisted in the gathering o f the data fo r the present study by two a d m in is tra to rs , one lib r a r ia n , and s ix a c t iv itie s d ire c to rs fo r the homes studied. The persons who assisted the researcher were selected on the basis o f t h e ir in te re s t in the to p ic o f the study and th e ir expressed w illin g n e s s to personally p a rtic ip a te . The data fo r the study were obtained by means o f a structured Reading Survey questionnaire th a t consisted o f eighteen items (see Appendix I ) . A structured questionnaire format was used in order to c o lle c t q u a n tifia b le and comparable data in a uniform manner from each respondent. Item 1 o f the questionnaire provided data on the number o f hours spent per week in the reading o f books, magazines, and newspapers. Items 2 through 4 sought to determine the categories o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the newspaper most often read by the respondents. Items 5 through 8 determined the sources fo r reading mate­ r ia ls , p u b lic 1ib ra ry and reading room use, and the use o f large p r in t books. Items 9 through 15 established the educational le v e ls , periods in the respondents l i f e when the most reading took place, chronological ages o f the respondents, sex o f the respondents, m a rita l s ta tu s , former occupations, and area o f residence during most o f t h e ir 1ives (urban, r u r a l, or suburban). Items 16 through 18 supplied inform ation concerning purposes fo r reading and reasons th a t prevented the respondents from reading more. The survey questionnaire was administered in the fo llo w in g manner: 32 1. The sample f o r the study was selected as described in the preceding section. 2. The survey questionnaire was d is trib u te d to each respondent by e ith e r the researcher or those persons who agreed to a s s is t in the study. 3. Respondents independently completed the survey questionnaire and returned i t to the designated representative in each home who assisted in the study. 4. The researcher co lle c te d the survey questionnaires from each representative. The researcher kept a record o f the number o f ques­ tio n n a ire s presented f o r completion and the number returned. Phase I I : The Group Interview s Based on the re s u lts o f the survey questionnaire and per­ sonal conversations w ith the respondents, the researcher developed fou r questions fo r in-depth study (see Appendix I I ) . The questions were presented by the researcher to the respondents during group in ­ terview sessions. 1. The group in te rvie w s were conducted as fo llo w s : The names o f a l l persons used in the survey sample fo r each home were put in a container and mixed. 2. Six names were then selected by the researcher fo r in te rvie w in each o f the eleven homes. 3. The interview s were tape recorded by the researcher. The to ta l number o f in te rvie w s was 11. interviewed was 66. The to ta l number o f persons 33 Method o f Reporting Results The inform ation recorded on each questionnaire was tabulated on a coding form. The inform ation from each questionnaire was then keypunched on an IBM computer card. The analysis o f re s u lts was reported in the form o f c o rre la ­ tio n s , t - t e s t s , analysis o f variance, and chi-square ta b le s . C orrela­ tio n s were used to determine the degree o f re la tio n s h ip between v a ria b le s . The t - te s ts perm itted the researcher to compare s t a t i s t i ­ cal means to determine the p ro b a b ility th a t the diffe ren ces between the means were real d iffe re n ce s ra th e r than chance d iffe re n ce s. Analy­ s is o f variance was used to determine diffe ren ces across groups. The chi-square te s t compared obtained frequencies w ith expected frequen­ cies and in dicated the p ro b a b ility th a t they were d iffe r e n t. The responses to the fo u r in te rvie w questions were recorded on tape. The responses o f the respondents were reported in summary form and not fragmentized fo r s t a t is t ic a l a n a lysis. The researcher decided th a t the inform ation from the survey questionnaires provided s u ffic ie n t s t a t is t ic a l data s p e c ific to the purposes o f the study. The in te rv ie w questions, th e re fo re , were developed to provide addi­ tio n a l depth to the study but were not designed fo r s t a t is t ic a l a n a ly s is. Summary This chapter o ffe re d a d e s c rip tio n o f the methodology in ­ volved in conducting the study. 34 The population was selected from eleven Homes f o r the Aged in Kent County, Michigan. The sample consisted o f , 20 percent o f the residents w ith in each home. The questionnaire was developed by the researcher w ith the assistance and advisement o f the guidance committee and Research Con­ s u lta n ts O ffic e a t Michigan State U n iv e rs ity . The in te rvie w questions were designed by the researcher. The purpose o f the questions was to provide greater depth to the study. The s t a t is t ic a l procedures were designed in conjunction w ith the Research Consultants a t Michigan State U n iv e rs ity . organized, presented, and analyzed in Chapter IV. The data are CHAPTER IV PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA The purpose o f th is study was to id e n tify the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f persons liv in g w ith in homes fo r the Aged in Kent County, Michigan. The study id e n tifie d the reading behaviors o f the older reader by means o f a stru ctu re d survey questionnaire and taped in te rvie w s. The data p e rtin e n t to reading behaviors were then s t a t is ­ t ic a l l y re la te d to the demographic c h a ra c te ris tic s o f age, education, sex, former occupation, m a rita l s ta tu s , and past lo c a tio n o f residence. The present chapter is organized as fo llo w s : 1. Research questions and analysis o f data. 2. In te rvie w questions and an analysis o f the in te rvie w responses. Research Questions Question 1 Is the v a rie ty in reading re la te d to the amount o f time spent in le is u re -tim e reading? The 249 respondents were requested to in d ic a te the to ta l number o f hours spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week. Of the 249 respondents stud ied , the mean number o f hours spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week was 11.34 hours w ith a range from one hour per week to fo rty -n in e hours per week. 35 36 In a d d itio n , the respondents were asked to in d ica te the categories o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the newspaper read during the past year. The sums o f each o f the d iffe r e n t types o f m ate rials read were s t a t is t ic a lly tested. The product-moment c o rre la ­ tio n r. was used to s t a t is t ic a lly te s t the degree o f re la tio n s h ip be­ tween the amount o f time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and v a rie ty in reading—categories o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the news­ paper. cant. A ll the c o rre la tio n c o e ffic ie n ts were s t a t is t ic a lly s i g n i f i ­ (See Table 4 .1 ). Table 4.1. Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and v a rie ty in reading. Time spent in le is u re -tim e (N = 249) reading w ith a range o f 1 h r. -49 hours per week * (p < .01) V a rie ty in Reading CB1 MT2 PN3 Total .49* .37* .27* .49* CB = categories o f books 2 MT = magazine topics 3 PN = parts o f the newspaper There was a s ig n ific a n tly p o s itiv e c o rre la tio n between the amount o f tim e spent in le is u re -tim e reading and v a rie ty in reading. Those who spent more time reading were more 1ik e ly to read in a v a rie ty o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the newspaper. A more s p e c ific presentation o f the d iffe r e n t categories o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the newspaper read by the re ­ spondents is presented in Tables 4 .2 , 4 .3 , and 4.4. 37 Table 4.2. Categories o f books B ible Categories o f books and the number o f respondents who read in each category. Number o f respondents reading fo r each category 220 R eligion (other than the B ib le ) 129 Biography 118 Adventure 104 Categories o f books Number o f respondents reading fo r each category Humor 31 S e lfimprovement 29 Gardening 29 Music 24 Business 18 Hobbies 18 Sports 12 Travel 87 Romance 80 H isto ry 74 Cookbooks 11 Mysteries 70 Plays 11 Poetry 52 A rt 10 P o litic s 41 Health 38 Westerns 31 Science F ic tio n 9 Science 9 38 Table 4.3. Topics o f magazines and the number o f respondents who read in each category. Number o f respondents who read each to p ic Magazine topics Magazine Topics Number o f respondents who read each to p ic R eligion 153 Homemaking 33 Current events 137 Romance 32 Short s to rie s 128 Sports 30 Travel 114 Conservation 26 P e rso n a litie s 83 Hobbies 23 Health Business 67 35 Crime s to rie s 19 Self-improvement 30 Repair 4 Table 4.4. Parts o f the newspaper and the number o f respondents who read each p a rt o f the newspaper. Parts o f the Newspaper Number o f Respondents who read each part Local and Community News 238 E d ito ria ls 200 B irth s and Deaths 180 Comic Section 95 Social Events 78 Advertisements 62 Business 59 Recreati on/Sports 51 National and State News 25 C la s s ifie d 21 39 The categories o f books th a t most interested the respond­ ents were the B ib le , re lig io n (w ith lig h t re lig io u s themes in contrast to deep the olo gical discussions)* biography, and adventure. Books o f le a s t in te re s t to be respondents consisted o f science, science f ic t io n , a r t , plays, cookbooks, and sports. The top ics o f magazines th a t most in te reste d the respondents pertained to r e lig io n , cu rre n t events, short s to rie s , and tra v e l. The respondents were le a s t in te re ste d in magazine top ics concerned w ith re p a ir and crime s to rie s . The parts o f the newspaper th a t most in te reste d the respond­ ents consisted o f lo cal and community news, e d ito r ia ls , and b irth s and deaths. The respondents in d ica te d the le a s t in te re s t in reading the c la s s ifie d sections, and national and sta te news parts o f the newspaper. Summary The v a rie ty o f reading is re la te d to the amount o f time spent in le is u re -tim e reading. Those persons who spend more time reading are also more lik e ly to have greater v a rie ty in t h e ir reading. Respondents read the B ible more than any other category o f books, magazines to p ics dealing w ith r e lig io n more than any other magazine to p ic s , and newspaper sections dealing w ith lo cal and community news more than any other sections. Question 2 Is the v a rie ty in reading re la te d to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l status o f the respondents? 40 The sums fo r v a rie ty in reading were fu rth e r s t a t is t ic a lly tested to determine i f v a rie ty in reading was re la te d to the independ­ ent va ria b le s o f age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l s ta tu s. (a) the product-moment c o rre la tio n r. s t a t is t ic a lly tested the degree o f re la tio n s h ip between v a rie ty in reading and age and between v a rie ty in reading and education. Of the c o rre la tio n c o e ffic ie n ts computed, there was no s t a t is t ic a l s ig n ific a n c e be­ tween v a rie ty in reading and age o f the respondents. A s t a t is ­ t i c a l l y s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip did e x is t between v a rie ty in reading and education. Table 4 .5 . (See Table 4.5) V a rie ty in reading and age and education. V a rie ty in Reading Age N = 249a CB1 MT2 PN3 -.12 -.05 -.05 Education N = 249& .38** .43** * ( p < .05) ** (p < .01) : CB = Categories o f books aRange o f 65-98 years w ith a mean o f 79.9 years = Ha9azine t0 Pics PN = Parts o f the newspaper Total -.11 .15* .41** ^Range o f 4-20 years w ith a mean o f 11.8 years There was a s ig n ific a n tly p o s itiv e c o rre la tio n between v a rie ty in reading and the education o f respondents. Those respond­ ents w ith more years o f formal education were more 1ik e ly to read in a v a rie ty o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the newspaper. (b) the t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the mean score d i f ­ ferences between v a rie ty in reading and the sex o f respondents. The c a te g irie s of* books th a t roost in te reste d the respond­ ents were the B ib le , religion (w ith lig h t religious themes to deep theological discussions)* biography, and adventure. in contrast Books o f le a st in te re s t to be respondents consisted of science, science f ic t io n , a r t, plays, cookbooks. The topics o t h a t most interested the respondents pertained to r e lig io n current events, short stories, and tra v e l. The respondents were least interested in magazine topics concerned w ith re p a ir and c rin v « The parts v roost interested the respond­ ents consisted of lo cal and com m unity news, e d it o r ia ls , and b irth s and deaths. .The res sonclents indicated the least in te re s t in reading the c la s s ifie d sections, and national and state news parts of the newspaper. Summary The v a rie ty o f reading Is related to the amount o f time spent in le is u re -tim r reading. r hose persons who spend more time reading are also more l i k e l y to nave greater v a rie ty in th e ir reading. Respondents read the Bible more than any other category of books, magazines to p ics dealing with -rel igion more than any other magazine to p ic s , and newspaper' sections dealing w ith lo ca l and community news more than any other sections. Question 2 Is the v a rie ty in reading related to age, education, sex, former occupation, a:id m arita l status o f the respondents? 41 The mean scores fo r v a rie ty in reading represent the average number o f d iffe r e n t categories o f books, d iffe re n t magazine to p ic s , and d iffe re n t parts o f the newspaper read by males and females. The mean scores between males and females p e rtin e n t to v a rie ty in reading were not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t fo r parts o f the newspaper. cant. A ll other t-valu es were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n i f i­ (See Table 4 .6 ). Table 4.6. V ariety in reading between males and females. Mean scores fo r v a rie ty in reading Sex CB1 MT2 PN3 Total mean score Males N = 55 3.76 2.55 3.78 10.09 Females N = 194 5.40 3.98 4.12 13.50 3.173** 3.449** 1.035 3.294*** t - values * * (p < .005) * * * (p < .0005) , CB = Categories o f books 2 MT = Magazine topics 3 PN = Parts o f the newspapers There were s ig n ific a n t diffe ren ces between males and females concerning v a rie ty in reading. Women read more d iffe re n t categories o f books and magazine top ics than males. Also, when v a rie ty in read­ ing is considered from an o ve ra ll viewpoint (combined to ta ls fo r categories o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the newspaper), women read w ith s ig n ific a n tly more v a rie ty than men. (c) Analysis o f variance s t a t is t ic a lly tested v a rie ty in reading across occupational groups o f the respondents. The 42 analysis o f variance was used to determine whether between-groups variance was s ig n ific a n tly greater than the within-groups variance. The mean scores fo r v a rie ty in reading represent the average num­ ber o f d iffe re n t categories o f books, d iffe r e n t magazine to p ic s , and d iffe r e n t parts o f the newspaper read by each occupational group. The F-value indicates whether or not s ig n ific a n t d i f f e r ­ ences occur across occupational groups p e rtin e n t to v a rie ty in reading. Table 4.7. (See Table 4 .7 ). V ariety in reading across occupational groups. Former Occupations Number o f Respondents N = 249 Mean Scores fo r V a riety in Reading CB1 MT2 PN3 Total Mean Scores Housewife 72 4.21 2.90 3.66 10.77 U nskilled Labor 20 3.20 2.10 3.40 8.70 C le ric a l 39 6.02 4.85 4.89 15.76 Professional 69 6.65 4.72 4.24 15.61 Farmer 6 2.17 1.16 4.50 7.83 Sales 17 6.41 4.12 4.64 15.17 Self-employed 10 3.70 3.00 3.30 10.00 S k ille d Labor 16 2.19 2.56 3.37 8.12 8.19* 5.97* 2.13** 7.77* F - value * (p < .0005) * * (p < .05) CB = Categories o f books 2 MT = Magazine topics 3 PN = Parts o f the newspaper 43 S t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t diffe ren ces were found between v a rie ty in reading and occupational groups. Respondents w ith the former occupations o f c le r ic a l, professional and sales read w ith more v a rie ty than the other occupational groups. (d) Analysis o f variance was also used to s t a t is t ic a lly te s t v a rie ty in reading across m a rita l status groups. 89 No s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t diffe ren ces were found between m arital status groups and parts o f the newspaper. Table 4.8. (See Table 4 .8 ). V a rie ty in reading across m a rita l status groups. M arital Status Groups Number o f Respondents N = 248 Mean Scores fo r V a rie ty in Reading CB1 MT2 PN3 Total Mean Scores Married 18 4.11 2.50 4.33 10.94 Single 54 6.15 4.52 4.20 14.87 6 1.33 2.17 3.16 6.66 170 4.89 3.55 3.97 12.41 4.96* 3.49** Divorced Widowed F - value * (p < .01) * * (p < .05) .577 4.08* 1 CB = Categories o f books 2 MT = Magazine topics PN = Parts o f the newspaper 89The reader should note N = 248 fo r m arita l status groups because one (1) respondent refused to in d ica te m a rita l status. As such, the computer dropped the blank m a rita l status data s p e c ific to th a t respondent. The re s u lts , however, were not s ig n ific a n tly in ­ fluenced by th a t fa c to r. 44 S t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t differences did occur between m a rita l status groups and in categories o f books and magazine to p ic s . Those respondents in the m a rita l status group designated as s in g le , read w ith more v a rie ty than the other groups. Summary V a rie ty in reading is re la te d to education, sex, former occupations, and m a rita l sta tu s. Respondents w ith more years of formal education are most lik e ly to read w ith more v a rie ty . generally read w ith greater v a rie ty than men. Women Respondents w ith the former occupations o f c le r ic a l, p ro fe s s io n a l, and sales read w ith more v a rie ty than the other occupational groups. Persons in the m a rita l status group o f "s in g le " are more lik e ly to read w ith more v a rie ty than other m a rita l status groups. Question 3 Is the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading re la te d to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l status o f the respond­ ents? The researcher also wanted to determine whether the to ta l number o f hours spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week was re la te d to age, education, sex, former occupation and m arita l status. (a) The product-moment c o rre la tio n jr s t a t is t ic a lly tested the degree o f re la tio n s h ip between the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week and age and education. No s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n i f i­ cant re la tio n s h ip existed between time spent in le is u re -tim e 45 reading and the ages o f the respondents. A s t a t is t ic a lly s i g n i f i ­ cant re la tio n s h ip did e x is t between time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and education. Table 4.9. (See Table 4.9) Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and age and education. Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading (Range 1 h r . -49 hrs. per week)' Age N - 249 0 (Range 65-98 years) " Education N = 249 ~ (Range 4-20 years o f education) *(p < .01) mean ages o f respondents 79.9 y rs . 1 mean hrs. per week 11.3 hrs. 3 mean years o f education 11.8 y rs . There was a s ig n ific a n tly p o s itiv e c o rre la tio n between the number o f hours spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week and education. Respondents w ith more years o f formal education spent greater amounts o f time in le is u re -tim e reading a c t iv it ie s than those w ith less education. (b) The t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the mean score d i f ­ ferences between the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week fo r males and females. diffe ren ces found. There was no s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t Both males and females spent 11.3 hours per week in le is u re -tim e reading a c t iv it ie s . (c) Analysis o f variance s t a t is t ic a lly tested the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week across occupational groups o f the respondents. The analysis o f variance determined whether between-groups variance was s ig n ific a n tly greater than w ith in ­ groups variance. 4.10. The s t a t is t ic a l re s u lts are presented in Table 46 Table 4.10. Time spent in le is u re -tim e reading across occupational groups. Former Occupation Number o f Respondents Mean hours per week spent in le is u re -tim e reading Housewife 72 8.22 U nskilled Labor 20 7.60 C le ric a l 39 12.97 Professional 69 14.85 6 6.50 Sales 17 16.58 Self-employed 10 12.70 S k ille d Labor 16 6.37 Farmer F - value 7.68* * (p < .0005) There were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t d iffe ren ces between the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and occupational groups. Respondents w ith a former occupation in "sales" were more lik e ly to spend more time in le is u re -tim e reading per week than other former occupation groups. (d) When analysis o f variance was computed fo r time spent in le is u re -tim e reading per week across m a rita l status groups, no s t a t is t ic a l sig n ifica n ce was found. The F-value was 1.248 and th e re fo re , greater than the .05 le ve l o f s ig n ific a n c e . Summery The time spent in le is u re -tim e reading is re la te d to educa­ tio n and the former occupations o f respondents. Persons w ith more 47 years o f formal education tended to spend more time in le is u re -tim e reading per week. F urthe r, respondents w ith a former occupation in sales work were more 1ik e ly to spend more time in le is u re -tim e reading a c t iv itie s per week than other occupation groups. Question 4 Is the use o f lib r a r y services re la te d to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l status o f the respondents? The answer to the research question required the researcher to analyze the data according to fo u r separate categories o f 1ib ra ry services: (a) sources f o r books, (b) frequency o f pu blic 1ib ra ry use, (c) frequency o f use by respondents o f reading rooms in the homes, and (d) the knowledge and use o f la r g e -p rin t books. (a) Sources fo r books.--The respondents were provided w ith a l i s t o f e ig h t sources f o r o b tain in g books on the survey ques­ tio n n a ire . The respondents were then requested to place a check mark near a ll the sources they used fo r obtaining books. If a s p e c ific source was checked, th a t source was considered a "yes" answer. I f a source was not checked, th a t source was computed as a "no" answer. The t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the diffe ren ces between the s t a t is t ic a l mean ages o f the respondents and whether or not those respondents used a s p e c ific source fo r books. For example, in Table 4.11 below, 191 respondents w ith a mean chronological age o f 80.18 years indicated they did not purchase books from a store. In c o n tra s t, 58 respondents w ith a mean chronological age o f 48 79.24 years responded th a t they did purchase books from a store . The d iffe re n ce between the mean ages (80.18 and 79.24) was not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. Of the e ig h t t-valu es computed, only g if t s and lib r a r y in the home were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. (See Table 4.11) Table 4.11. Mean ages o f persons using various sources to obtain books. Sources Sources Used Purchase from store V is it p u b lic lib r a r y Use o f book c a rt M ailing service Borrow from frie n d s G ifts Book club No Yes N = 191 80.18 N = 58 79.24 .941 N = 211 80.25 N = 38 78.34 1.651 = 239 79.87 N = 10 82.10 1.044 N = 234 79.85 N = 15 81.66 1.030 N = 147 79.13 N = 102 80.00 .714 N = 160 79.13 N = 89 81.44 2.682* = 225 79.91 N = 24 80.41 .352 N = 105 80.75 N = 144 79.36 1.674** N N L ib ra ry in the home t-v a lu e * (p T V o fT * * (p < .05) The s t a t is t ic a l re s u lts indicated th a t old e r persons more often received books as g if t s . In c o n tra s t, younger respondents were more lik e ly to obtain th e ir books from a lib r a r y in the home. 49 A t - t e s t also s t a t is t ic a lly tested the diffe ren ces between the mean number o f years o f formal education p e rtin e n t to the respond­ ents and sources fo r obtaining books. For example in Table 4.12, 191 respondents w ith a mean o f 11.68 years o f formal education indicated they did not purchase books from a store. In c o n tra st, 58 respondents w ith a mean o f 12.20 years o f formal education stated they did pur­ chase books from a store. The d iffe re n ce between the two mean scores was no t, however, s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. Of the e ig h t t-valu es computed, v is it s to the pu blic lib ra ry , m ailing se rvice , borrow from frie n d s , g i f t s , and 1ib ra ry in the home were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n i f i ­ cant. (See Table 4.12) Table 4.12. Mean years o f education using various sources to obtain books. Sources Sources Used No Purchase from store V is it p u b lic lib r a r y Use o f book c a rt M ailing service Borrow from frie n d s G ifts Book club L ib ra ry in the home * (p < .0005) t-v a lu e Yes N = 191 11.68 N = 58 12.20 .995 N = 211 11.41 N = 38 13.97 4.263* = 10 13.10 1.188 = 239 11.74 N N N = 234 11.69 N = 15 13.53 1.972** N = 147 11.27 N = 102 12.56 2.896*** N = 160 11.43 N = 89 12.46 2.212** = 225 11.71 N = 24 12.66 1.263 N = 105 11.22 N = 144 12.22 2.213** N * * (p < .05) * * * (p < .01) 50 S ta t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t d iffe re n ce s between the mean num­ ber o f years o f formal education and various sources used to obtain books were found. Respondents w ith more years o f education were more lik e ly to use v is its to the p u b lic lib r a r y , m ailing se rvice , borrow from frie n d s , g if t s , and lib r a r y in the home as sources fo r obtaining books than respondents w ith less education. Chi-square s t a t is t ic a lly tested sources fo r obtaining books between males and females. Of the e ig h t chi-squares computed, fiv e proved to be s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. 4.16, and 4.17) (See Tables 4.13, 4.14, 4.15, There were no s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re s u lts be­ tween sex differences and sources fo r books p e rtin e n t to v is it s to the public lib r a r y , use o f a book c a r t, and lib r a r y in the home. Table 4.13. Sex o f respondents and purchase from the sto re . Number o f Respondents Sex Purchase from Store No Yes Male 65% 35% 55 Female 80% 20% 194 Chi-square = 5.002; d . f . = 1; (p < .05) A high percentage o f respondents o f both sexes did not p re fer to purchase books from a sto re . Men, however, were more lik e ly to purchase books from a store than were women. 51 Table 4.14. Sex o f respondents and book m ailing from p u b lic lib r a r y . Sex Book M ailing No Yes Male 100% 0% 55 92% 8% 194 Female Number o f Respondents Chi-square = 4.525; d . f . = 1 ; (p < .05) The m a jo rity o f the respondents did not use the book m ailing service from the pu blic lib r a r y . I f book m ailing was used, women were more lik e ly to a va il themselves to th a t service as a source fo r books than were men. Table 4.15. Sex o f respondents and borrow from frie n d s . Borrow from Friends No Yes Sex Number o f Respondents Male 78% 22% 55 Female 54% 46% 194 Chi-square = 10.700; d . f . = 1; (p < .005) A greater percentage o f the respondents did not borrow books from frie n d s . A higher percentage o f women, however, were more in ­ cline d to borrow books from frie n d s than were men. 52 Sex o f respondents and g if t s . Male o 60% Female Number o f Respondents ro o Sex G ifts No Yes 00 Table 4.16. 55 40% 194 Chi-square = 7.618; d . f . = 1 ; (p < .005) A high percentage o f both men and women did not consider g if t s as an important source fo r books. Women were, however, more lik e ly to receive books as g ift s than men. Table 4.17. Sex o f respondents and book club. Number o f Respondents Sex Book Club No Yes Male 98% 2% 55 Female 88% 12% 194 Chi-square = 4.957; d . f . = 1; (p < .05) Respondents generally did not belong to book clubs. A higher percentage o f women, however, did use book clubs as a source fo r books than did men. Chi-square was also computed pe rtain in g to sources fo r obtaining books and occupation groups. Of the e ig h t chi-squares computed, fiv e proved to be s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. 4.18, 4.19, 4.20, 4.21 and 4.22). (See Tables The re la tio n sh ip s between occupa­ tio n s and sources fo r books were not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t when combined w ith book m a ilin g , book clu b , and lib r a r y in the home. 53 Table 4.18. Former occupation o f respondents and purchase from a store . Former Occupation Purchase from Store No Yes Number Respondents Housewife 82% 18% 72 U nskilled Labor 75% 25% 20 C le rica l 87% 13% 39 Professional 72% 28% 69 Farmer 83% 17% 6 Sales 82% 18% 17 Self-employed 30% 70% 10 S k ille d Labor 69% 31% 16 Chi-square = 17.454; d . f . = 7 ; (p < .01) A high percentage o f the respondents in each former occupa­ tio n group was not interested in the purchasing o f books from stores. Self-employed respondents, however, were more in c lin e d to purchase books from a store than any o f the other occupational groups. Former Occupation V is it Public L ib ra ry Yes No Housewife 89% 11% 72 100% 0% 20 C le ric a l 85% 15% 39 Professional 70% 30% 69 Farmer 100% 0% 6 Sales 00 Table 4.19. Former occupation o f respondents and v i s i t to the public lib r a r y . 17 CD U nskilled Labor Number o f Respondents 12% Self-employed 90% 10% 10 S k ille d Labor 100% 0% 16 Chi-square = 21.183; d . f . - 7; (p < .005) A high percentage o f persons in each o f the occupational groups was less lik e ly to d ir e c t ly v i s i t the p u b lic lib r a r y to obtain books. F urther, 100 percent o f the persons w ith former occupations as u n skille d la bo r, farm er, and s k ille d labor were le a s t in c lin e d to v i s i t the public lib r a r y than other occupational groups. A s ig n ific a n t percentage o f the respondents in each o f the occupational groups was le a s t lik e ly to use a book c a rt service as a means to obtain books. Respondents (100 percent) w ith the former occupations o f housewife, u n s k ille d la b o r, farm er, sales, and s e lfemployed were le a st in c lin e d to use a book c a rt service in any degree fo r obtaining books as contrasted w ith the other occupation groups. Table 4.20. Former occupation o f respondents and book c a rt use. Number o f Respondents Former Occupation Use o f Book Cart No Yes Housewife 100% 0% 72 U nskilled Labor 100% 0% 20 C le rica l 90% 10% 39 Professional 93% 7% 69 Farmer 100% 0% 6 Sales 100% 0% 17 Self-employed 90% 10% 10 S k ille d Labor 100% 0% 16 Chi-square = 12.218; d . f . = 7; (p < .05) 55 Table 4.21. Former occupation o f the respondents and borrowing from frie n d s . Former Occupation Borrow from Friends No Yes Number o f Respondents Housewife 64% 36% 72 U nskilled Labor 85% 15% 20 C le rica l 46% 54% 39 Professional 46% 54% 69 100% 0% 6 Sales 59% 41% 17 Self-employed 80% 20% 10 S k ille d Labor 62% 38% 16 Farmer Chi-square = 19.585; d . f . = 7; (p < .005) Although a greater percentage o f respondents did not borrow books from frie n d s , s ig n ific a n t differences did occur between occupa­ tio n a l groups. Persons w ith former occupations as c le r ic a l and professional were more lik e ly to borrow books from frie n d s than the other occupational groups. Table 4.22. Former occupation o f the respondents and g if t s . Number o f Respondents Former Occupation G ifts No Yes Housewife 68% 32% 72 U nskilled Labor 85% 15% 20 C le rica l 56% 44% 39 Professional 54% 46% 69 56 Table 4.22. Continued. Former Occupation G ifts No Yes Number o f Respondents Farmer 83% 17% 6 Sales 71% 29% 17 Self-employed 90% 10% 10 S k ille d Labor 56% 44% 16 Chi-square = 13.221; d . f . = 7; (p < .05) A greater percentage o f persons in each o f the occupational groups did not re ly on g if t s as a source fo r books. Respondents f o r ­ merly in the occupation groups o f c le r ic a l, p ro fe s s io n a l, and s k ille d labor received a higher percentage o f books as g if t s than did the other occupational groups. Data pe rtain in g to sources o f books and m a rita l status groups were s im ila r ly analyzed by chi-squares. Of the e ig h t c h i- squares computed, fou r proved to be s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. (See Tables 4.23, 4.24, 4.25 and 4.26) Table 4.23. M arital status and purchase from the store. Number o f Respondents M arital Status Purchase from Store No Yes Married 50% 50% 18 Single 74% 26% 54 Divorced 100% 0% 6 Widowed 80% 20% 170 Chi-square = 10.332; d . f . = 3; (p < .01) 57 A s ig n ific a n tly greater percentage o f the respondents in the m arita l status groups did not purchase books from a sto re . Mar­ rie d persons, however, were more lik e ly to purchase books from a store than the other m a rita l status groups. Divorced respondents were the le a s t lik e ly o f a ll the m a rita l status groups to purchase books from a store . Table 4.24. M a rita l status and book c a rt service. Number o f Respondents M arital Status Use o f Book Cart Yes No Married 83% 17% 18 Single 93% 7% 54 Divorced 100% 0% 6 Widowed 98% 2% 170 Chi-square = 11.526; d . f . = 3 ; (p < .005) A s ig n ific a n tly greater percentage o f respondents in the m arital status groups did not depend on a book c a rt service as a source fo r books. Married persons, however, were more lik e ly to use a book c a rt service as a source fo r books than the other m arital status groups. 58 Table 4.25. M arita l status and borrowing from frie n d s . M arita l Status Borrow from Friends No Yes Number o f Respondents Married 94% 6% 18 Single 46% 54% 54 Divorced 100% 0% 6 Widowed 58% 42% 170 Chi-square = 17.189; d . f . = 3; (P < .0005) Although a g re ate r percentage o f the respondents in the m a rita l status groups was: le a s t in c lin e d to borrow books from frie n d s , diffe ren ces did occur between the groups. Persons in the m arital status groups o f "s in g le " and "widowed" were more lik e ly to borrow bboks from frie n d s than persons in the other m arita l status groups. Table 4.26. M arita l status and g if t s . M a rita l Status G ifts from Friends Yes No Number o f Respondents Married 100% 0% 18 Single 61% 39% 54 Divorced 83% 17% 6 Widowed 61% 39% 170 Chi-square = 11.930; d . f . = 3; (P < .005) A s ig n ific a n tly greater percentage o f the respondents did not receive books as g if t s . Persons, however, who were "s in g le " or "widowed" received more books as g if t s than any o f the other m a rita l status groups. 59 Summary o f Sources o f Books Respondents w ith more years o f formal education were more lik e ly to use v is it s to the public lib r a r y , m ailing services, borrowing from frie n d s , and lib r a ry in the home as sources fo r obtaining books. Men were more in clin e d to purchase books from a store than were women. In c o n tra st, women, more than men, used book m ailing from the public l i ­ b ra ry^ borrow from frie n d s , g if t s , and book clubs as sources fo r books. Self-employed persons were more lik e ly to obtain books through pur­ chase from a store than the other occupation groups. A v i s i t to the pu blic 1ib ra ry fo r books was le a st 1ik e ly to occur among the occupation groups o f u n skille d laborers, farm ers, and s k ille d la bo rers. Respond­ ents in the c le ric a l and professional former occupation groups were more in clin e d to borrow books from frie n d s than the other occupations. Book c a rt services le a s t in te reste d the occupational groups o f housewife, u n skille d la b o r, farm er, sales, and self-employed. Re­ spondents in the former occupation groups o f c le r ic a l, p ro fe ssio n a l, and s k ille d labor were more lik e ly to receive books as g if t s than the other occupations. Married respondents used purchases from the store and book c a rt services more than the other m arita l status groups as sources fo r books. Widowed and sin g le respondents were more in c lin e d to borrow books from frie n d s and to receive books as g if t s than other m arita l status groups. (b) Frequency o f p u b lic lib r a r y use. —Respondents were asked how freq ue ntly they used the service o f the pu blic lib r a r y — fre q u e n tly , o cca sio na lly, hardly ever, or never. Each o f the 60 response choices was weighted according to the fo llo w in g values fo r fu rth e r a n a lysis: fre q u e n tly —4; occasionally—3; hardly ever—2; and never—1. The sums fo r each o f the choices were then s t a t is t ic a lly tested. The product-moment c o rre la tio n r. s t a t is t ic a lly tested the the degree o f re la tio n a h ip between p u b lic lib r a r y use and age and education. No s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip existed between pu blic 1ib ra ry use and age o f the respondents. A s t a t is ­ t ic a l ly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip did e x is t between use o f the public 1ib ra ry and education. (See Table 4.27) There was a s ig n ific a n tly p o s itiv e c o rre la tio n between the use o f pu blic lib r a r y services and education. Respondents w ith more years o f formal education were more 1ik e ly to use the services o f the public 1ib ra ry . Table 4.27. Use o f p u b lic lib r a r y services and age and education. Use o f p u b lic lib r a r y services Age N = 249 Education N = 249 -.02 .34* * (P < .01) The t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the diffe ren ces in mean scores fo r males and females p e rta in in g to frequency o f p u b lic lib r a r y use. The t-v a lu e computed was s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. Table 4.28) (See The reader is again cautioned to remember th a t the "mean scores" fo r use o f p u b lic lib r a r y services are "weighted scores." 61 That means the respondents were asked how fre q u e n tly they used the service o f the pu blic lib r a r y —fre q u e n tly , occa sio na lly, hardly ever, or never. Each o f the response choices was then weighted according to the fo llo w in g values: 2; and never—1. fre q u e n tly —4; occasionally—3; hardly ever— The sums fo r each o f the choices were then obtained and a s t a t is t ic a l mean score computed. Table 4.28. Frequency o f lib ra ry use by sex. Frequency N = 249 Sex Male Female Mean scores fo r frequency o f use o f p u b lic lib r a r y services 55 1.49 194 1.98 t-v a lu e 3.031* *(p < .01) A s ig n ific a n t d iffe re n ce was found between men and women p e rtin e n t to the frequency o f pu blic 1ib ra ry use. The mean scores o f 1.49 fo r men and 1.98 fo r women would imply th a t women were more 1ik e ly to use the services o f the p u b lic 1ib ra ry than were men. From an o ve ra ll viewpoint o f the 249 respondents, n e ith e r o f the sexes s u b s ta n tia lly went to the public lib r a r y b u ild in g fo r services. Analysis o f variance s t a t is t ic a lly tested the use o f the p u blic 1ib ra ry across occupational groups. The analysis o f variance determined whether between-groups variance was s ig n ific a n tly greater than w ithin-groups variance. in Table 4.29. The s t a t is t ic a l re s u lts are presented 62 Table 4.29. Frequency o f lib r a r y use and occupation groups. Occupation Groups Frequency N = 249 Mean scores fo r frequency o f Use o f the p u b lic 1ib ra ry Housewife 72 1.87 U nskilled Labor 20 1.10 C le ric a l 39 1.92 Professional 69 2.33 6 1.33 Sales 17 1.47 Self-employed 10 1.80 S k ille d Labor 16 1.43 Farmer F-value 4.59* *(p < .0005) Again, respondents in each o f the occupational groups were not in c lin e d to go d ir e c tly to the public lib r a r y fo r services. Respondents in the professional occupation group, however, went to the 1ib ra ry more freq ue ntly than any o f the other occupational groups. S im ila rly , analysis o f variance was used to te s t the f r e ­ quency of lib r a r y use across m arita l status groups. s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t differences found. There were no The F-value was 1,432 and, th e re fo re , greater than the .05 level o f s ig n ific a n c e . Summary o f Frequency o f Public L ib ra ry Use In general, respondents did not go d ir e c tly to the pu blic lib r a r y fo r reading services. Women were more frequent users o f pub­ l i c lib r a r y services than were men. Respondents in the professional occupation group used the services o f the pu blic lib r a r y more d ir e c tly than did persons in the other occupational groups. 63 (c) Presence or absence o f a reading room in the home. — The respondents were requested on the survey questionnaire to in dicate whether or not there was a reading room in the home. The response choices were e ith e r "yes" or "n o." The presence or absence o f a reading room in each o f the eleven homes was computed by chi-square te s t. Table 4.30. The re s u lts are presented in Table 4.30. Reading room in each o f the eleven homes fo r the aged. Reading Room in the Home No Yes Home Number Number of Respondents 1 4% 96% 49 2 10% 90% 10 3 12% 88% 26 4 25% 75% 16 5 50% 50% 12 6 0% 100% 13 7 5% 95% 43 8 100% 0% 9 9 0% 100% 9 10 24% 76% 34 11 7% 93% 28 Chi -square = 113.345; d . f . = 20; (p < .0005) Although a ll o f the homes,, except home number e ig h t, reading rooms, Table 4.30 shows th a t e ith e r the respondents were not always aware o f th e ir existence or other variab les influenced the responses. Why, fo r example, did the respondents in home number fiv e respond "yes" (50%) and "no" (50%) as to the existence o f a reading room in th a t home? In order to c la r if y the data, the researcher 65 s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between frequency o f use o f e x is tin g reading rooms and age, education, sex, former occupation, or m a rita l status o f the respondents. In homes where no reading room e xiste d , the respondents were requested to in d ica te the p o te n tia l frequency o f use i f such a room was provided. Again, each o f the response choices was weighted according to the fo llo w in g values: hardly ever—2; and never—1. fre q u e n tly—4 ; occasionally—3; There were no s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between p o te n tia l frequency o f use i f reading rooms were provided and age, education, sex, former occupation, or m arital status o f the respondents. There were 208 respondents liv in g in homes w ith reading rooms who reported they "occasionally used the rooms fo r rea ding .11 In the homes reported by the respondents as not having reading rooms, fo rty-o n e respondents indicated they would "hardly ever" use such rooms i f provided. Summary P e rtin en t to the Presence or Absence o f Reading Rooms in the Homes Ten o f the eleven homes had reading rooms. There were no s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n sh ip s between frequency o f use o f e x is tin g reading rooms and age, education, sex, former occupation, or m arita l sta tu s. A lso, there were no s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between p o te n tia l frequency o f use i f reading rooms were provided and age, education, sex, former occupation, or m arital status. 66 (d) Knowledge and use o f la rg e -p rin t books. —A knowledge o f la rg e -p rin t books was tested by the use o f chi-square. The respondents were asked, "have you ever seen a la rg e -p rin t book?" The response choice was e ith e r a "yes" or a "no" answer. The knowledge o f la rg e -p rin t books p e rtin e n t to the respondents liv in g in a ll eleven homes was s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. (See Table 4.3 1.) Table 4.31. Home Number Knowledge o f la rg e -p rin t books w ith in each home. Knowledge o f la rg e -p rin t books No Yes Number of Respondents 1 8% 92% 49 2 10% 90% 10 3 23% 77% 26 4 31% 69% 16 5 33% 67% 12 6 8% 92% 13 7 7% 93% 43 8 44% 56% 9 9 0% 100% 9 10 6% 94% 34 11 14% 86% 28 Chi-square = 23.897; d . f . = 10; (p < . 005) Thei respondents were fu rth e r‘ requested to in d ic a te the frequency o f th e ir use o f la rg e -p rin t books. Each o f the response choices was weighted according to the fo llo w in g values: occasionally—3; hardly ever—2; and never—1. frequency—4; There were no s t a t is ­ t ic a l ly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between frequency o f use o f 67 la rg e -p rin t books and age, education, sex, or m a rita l sta tu s. An analysis o f variance d id , however, determine a s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n i f i ­ cant d iffe re n ce in the frequency o f la rg e -p rin t books and former occupation as shown in Table 4.32. Table 4.32. Use o f la rg e -p rin t books and occupation groups. Former Occupation Number o f Respondents Housewife 72 2.51 U nskilled Labor 20 2.80 C le ric a l 39 2.12 Professional 69 2.40 6 3.00 Sales 17 1.58 Self-employed 10 3.90 S k ille d Labor 16 2.37 Farmer Mean Scores fo r frequency values 4.00* F-value *(p < .0005) There were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t diffe ren ces between the frequency o f use o f la rg e -p rin t books and former occupation groups. For example, the 10 respondents in the self-employed group indicated the most frequent use o f la rg e -rp rin t books. Respondents w ith a former occupation o f sales le s s ;fre q u e n tly read Jarge-prirrfc books in con trast to the other occupation groups. 68 Summary fo r Knowledge and Use o f Large-P rint Books The m a jo rity o f respondents in the study knew th a t la rg e p r in t e d itio n s o f books existe d. Farmers and self-employed former oc­ cupation groups most fre q u e n tly read’ la rg e -p rin t books. Persons w ith a former occupation o f "sales" were le a st lik e ly to read la rg e -p rin t books. The other former occupation groups "hardly ever" read la rge - p r in t books. Question 5 Are periods o f in te nsive reading re lated to sex, education, and past lo ca tio n o f residence o f the respondents? The respondents were asked to in d ica te the ages in which the most in te n sive reading took place in th e ir liv e s . choices consisted o f s ix age groups: The response 6-10 years, 11-14 years, 15-20 years, 21-40 years, 41-64 years, and age 65 or o ld e r. The respondents were fre e to check as many o f the response choices as desired. If a response item was checked in d ic a tin g a period o f in te nsive reading, th a t item was considered a "yes" response. Unchecked response choices were considered as a "no" response. Of the s ix chi-squares computed pe rtain in g to sex d if f e r ­ ences and periods in which in te n sive reading took place, three c h isquares proved to be s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. 4.34 and 4.35) (See Tables 4.33, The in te ra c tio n between sex differences and period o f Intensive reading were not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t during the periods o f 21-40 years, 41-64 years, and 65 years or older. 69 Table 4.33. Periods o f in te nsive reading (6-10 years) between males and females. Intensive Reading During 6-10 years Yes No Sex Number o f Respondents Males 58% 42% 55 Females 45% 55% 194 Chi-square = 3.055; d . f . = 1 ; (p < .05) The period o f intensive reading (6-10) was s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t between males and females. Women read more in te n s iv e ly than men during the chronological ages o f 6-10 years. Table 4.34. Sex Periods o f intensive reading (11-14 years) between males and females. Intensive Reading During 11 -14 years No Yes Number o f Respondents Mai es 60% 40% 55 Females 45% 55% 194 Chi-square = 3.676; d . f . = 1 ; (p < .05) The period o f in tensive reading (11-14 years) was s t a t is ­ t ic a l l y s ig n ific a n t between males and females. Women read more in te n s iv e ly than men during the chronological ages o f 11-14 years. 70 Table 4.35. Periods o f intensive reading (15-20 years) between males and females. Intensive Reading During 15-20 years No Yes Sex Number o f Respondents Males 56% 44% 55 Females 38% 62% 194 Chi-square = 5.833; d . f . = 1; (p < .01) The period o f in tensive reading (15-20 years) was s t a t is ­ t ic a l ly s ig n ific a n t between males and females. Women read more in te n s iv e ly than men during the chronological ages o f 15-20 yea rs. Although three chi-squares were not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n if i cant, the data concerning periods o f in tensive reading and sex differences are summarized in Table 4.36. The percentages in each o f the c e lls are to be in te rpre te d as a "yes" response s p e c ific to each o f the periods o f years. Table 4.36. Sex Summarized data concerning periods o f in te n sive reading between males and females. 6-10 y rs . 11-14 y rs . 15-20 y rs . 21-40 y rs . 41-64 y rs . 65 y rs . or older Males 42% 40% 44% 60% 58% 79% Females 55% 55% 62% 51% 62% 79% N * 249 Women were more lik e ly to read more in te n s iv e ly than men throughout a ll age periods w ith the exception o f the period 65 years 71 o r o ld e r. The a tte n tio n o f the reader is also directed towards a greater v a r ia b ilit y p e rtin e n t to periods o f in te nsive reading fo r men than women. The t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the mean score differences between periods o f intensive reading and years o f education fo r the respondents. There were no s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t t-valu es fo r the age 65 years or older category and years o f education. A ll other t-values were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. In order (See Table 4 . 37) to in te rp re t Table 4.37, the fo llo w in g example is provided. During the period o f 6-10 years, 130 o f the respondents w ith a mean o f 12.23 years o f education read more in te n s iv e ly than 119 o f the respondents w ith a mean o f 11.32 years o f education. Table 4.37. Mean years o f education and periods o f in te nsive reading. Periods o f Intensive Reading 6-10 years 11-14 years 15-20 years 21-40 years 41-64 years Age 65 or older * (p < .05) Read In te n s iv e ly During Each Period t-v a lu e No Yes N = 119 11.32 N = 130 12.23 2.049* N = 121 11.24 N = 128 12.32 2.440** N = 105 10.93 N = 144 12.43 3.395*** N = 96 10.96 N = 153 12.32 3.006** N = 96 10.53 N » 153 12.60 4.698*** N = 50 11.26 N » 198 11,93 **(p < .01) ** *(p < .0005) ,861 72 S ig n ific a n t differences were determined between the mean years o f education and periods o f extensive reading. With the excep­ tio n o f the period o f age 65 or o ld e r, respondents w ith more years o f education tended to read more in te n s iv e ly throughout th e ir 1ife-span than persons w ith less education. Chi-square s t a t is t ic a lly tested the re la tio n s h ip between periods o f in te nsive reading and past lo ca tio n o f residence o f the respondents. Of the s ix chi-squares computed, three were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. (See Tables 4.38, 4.39 and 4.40) There were no s t a t is ­ t ic a l l y s ig n ific a n t re la tio n sh ip s between past lo catio n o f residence ( r u r a l, urban and suburban) and periods o f in te nsive reading during 6-10 years, 11-14 years, and 21-40 years. In order to in te rp re t the data presented in the fo llo w in g three ta b le s , the data in Table 4.38 is presented as an example. Of the 36 respondents whose former residence was in a ru ra l area, 58% indicated they did not (No) read in te n s iv e ly during the ages o f 15-20 years in con trast to 42% o f the respondents who indicated they did (Yes) read in te n s iv e ly . Table 4.38. Past Location o f Residence Periods o f intensive reading (15-20 years) and past lo ca tio n o f residence. Intensive Reading During 15-20 Years No Yes Number o f Respondents Rural 58% 42% 36 Urban 38% 62% 182 Suburban 48% 52% 31 Chi-square = 5.701; d . f . = 2; (p < .05) 73 A s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip was found between the period o f intensive reading (15-20 years) and past lo c a tio n o f residence. Respondents w ith a past lo ca tio n o f residence in an urban area were more lik e ly to read more in te n s iv e ly during the period o f 15-20 years than persons liv in g in e ith e r ru ra l or suburban areas. Table 4.39. Periods o f in tensive reading (41-64 years) and past legation o f residence. Past Location o f Residence Intensive Reading During 41-64 Years No Yes Number o f Respondents Rural 58% 42% 36 Urban 36% 64% 182 Suburban 32% 68% 31 Chi-square = 7.083; d . f . = 2; (p < .05) A s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip existed between the period o f intensive reading (41-64 years) and past lo c a tio n o f residence. Respondents liv in g in suburban areas were more 1ik e ly to read in te n s iv e ly during 41-64 years than were persons liv in g in ru ra l or urban areas. Table 4.40. Past Location o f Residence Periods o f in te nsive reading (65 years or o ld e r) and past lo catio n o f residence. Intensive Reading During 65 years o r Older No Yes Number o f Respondents Rural 34% 66% 36 Urban 17% 83% 182 Suburban 23% 77% 31 Chi-square = 5.557; d . f . = 2; (p < .05) 74 A s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip was found between periods o f in te nsive reading 65 years o r older and past lo ca tio n o f residence. Persons whose past residence was in an urban area were more lik e ly to read more in te n s iv e ly during the period 65 years or older than persons from ru ra l or suburban areas. Summary Periods o f in te nsive reading were re la te d to sex, education and past lo c a tio n o f residence. Women were more lik e ly than men to read more in te n s iv e ly during the periods 6-10 yea rs, 11-14 years, and 15-20 years. Respondents w ith more years o f formal education read more in te n s iv e ly throughout t h e ir 1ife-span than persons w ith less education. Persons w ith a past lo ca tio n o f residence in an urban area tended to read more in te n s iv e ly during 15-20 ye a rs, and 65 years or olde r. Respondents liv in g in suburban areas were more lik e ly to read more in te n s iv e ly during 41-64 years. Question 6 Is the recognized the rap eutic value o f reading re la te d to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m a rita l status o f the respondents? The respondents were requested to in d ica te the frequency w ith which reading helped to solve a problem or re lie v e psychological tensions. Each o f the response choices was weighted according to the fo llo w in g values: and never—1. fre q u e n tly --4 ; occa sio na lly—3; hardly ever—2; 75 (a) The product-moment c o rre la tio n jr s t a t is t ic a lly tested the degree o f re la tio n s h ip between the recognized therapeutic value o f reading and age and education. was not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. The c o e ffic ie n t fo r age The re la tio n s h ip , however, between the recognized therapeutic value o f reading and education was s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. Table 4.41. (See Table 4.41) Recognized therapeutic value o f reading and age and education. Recognized therapeutic value o f reading Age N = 249 Education N = 249 .05 .21* *(p < .01) There was a s ig n ific a n tly p o s itiv e c o rre la tio n between the recognized therapeutic value o f reading and education. Respondents w ith more formal education were more lik e ly to in d ica te th a t reading helped to solve a problem, re lie ve d psychological tensions, or ju s t helped them fe e l b e tte r about themselves than persons w ith less education. (b) The t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the differences in frequency mean scores p e rta in in g to the recognized therapeutic value o f reading fo r males and females. No s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n i f i­ cant t-v a lu e was determined. (c) An analysis o f variance s t a t is t ic a lly tested the recognized therapeutic value o f reading across m a rita l status 77 Summary The recognized therapeutic value o f reading was re la te d to education and former occupation. Respondents w ith more years o f formal education were more lik e ly to recognize the therapeutic value o f reading than persons w ith less education. The self-employed occu­ pation groups "fre q u e n tly" recognized the therapeutic value o f reading in con trast to the other occupation groups. Question 7 Are purposes fo r reading re la te d to age, education, sex, former occupation, and m arita l status o f respondents? The respondents were directed to th in k o f a book or magazine a r t ic le which was read during the past year and considered to be important or in te re s tin g . The respondents were fu rth e r requested to w rite the to p ic o f the book or magazine a r t ic le . Of the 249 respond­ ents in th is study, 13 respondents w ith a mean age o f 77.84 years did not fin d any top ics in te re s tin g or im portant. In c o n tra s t, 236 respondents w ith a mean age o f 80.14 years c ite d the top ics o f biog­ raphies, r e lig io n , tr a v e l, and lig h t f ic t io n as in te re s tin g or im portant. The respondents were then provided w ith seven response choices which explained why the top ics were important or in te re s tin g . The respondents were fre e to choose as many o f the seven choices as they desired. In the computation o f the data, th e re fo re , any response choices checked by the respondents were considered as "yes" responses and any choices not checked were considered "no" responses. For 78 example, 1n Table 4.43, 110 respondents w ith a mean age o f 80.75 years considered th e ir to p ic important because i t " f il le d a s p ir itu a l need." In c o n tra st, 139 respondents w ith a mean age o f 79.33 years did not check th a t choice as important p e rtin e n t to th e ir to p ic . The t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the diffe ren ces between the mean ages o f the respondents and purposes fo r reading. The re s u lts are presented in Table 4.43. Table 4.43. Mean ages and purposes fo r reading. Possible response choices p e rta in in g to purposes fo r reading Mean Ages and Number o f Respondents No Yes F ille d s p ir itu a l need N = 139 79.33 N = 110 80.75 1.687* N = 128 80.03 N = 121 79.89 .174 Used fo r conversation w ith others N = 195 79.78 N = 54 80.61 .814 Self-improvement N = 201 79.98 N = 48 79.87 .104 N = 201 80.14 N = 48 79.20 .823 N = 193 79.87 N = 56 80.28 .414 N = 245 80.04 N= 4 74.74 1.597 N = 233 80.02 N = 16 79.06 .564 Pleasure or re la xa tio n Helps avoid boredom Provided p ra c tic a l inform ation fo r demands o f d a ily liv in g Related to a hobby Other reasons *(p < .05) t-va lu e 79 S ig n ific a n t differences existed between the mean ages o f the respondents and purposes fo r reading. Respondents (110) w ith a mean age o f 80.75 read to f i l l a s p ir itu a l need more often than 139 respondents w ith mean ages o f 79.33. No other s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n i f i ­ cant differences were found. The t - t e s t also s t a t is t ic a lly tested the diffe ren ces be­ tween years o f education o f the respondents and purposes fo r reading. The re s u lts are presented in Table 4.44. Table 4.44. Education and purposes fo r reading. Purposes fo r Reading Mean Years o f Education and Number o f Respondents No Yes t-v a lu e N = 139 12.07 N - 110 11.46 1.354 N = 128 11.23 N = 121 12.40 2.650* Used fo r conversation w ith others N = 195 11.57 N = 54 12.61 1.913** Self-improvement N = 201 11.40 N = 48 13.45 3.712*** N = 201 11.80 N = 48 11.79 .245 N = 193 11.47 N = 56 12.94 2.794* N = 245 11.76 N= 4 14.00 1.258 N = 233 11.67 N = 16 13.62 2.152** F ille d s p ir itu a l need Pleasure and re la xa tio n Help avoid boredom Provided p ra ctica l inform ation fo r demands o f d a ily liv in g Related to a hobby Other reasons *(p < .01) **(p < .05) * * * (p < .0005) 80 S t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t differences existed between years o f education o f the respondents and purposes fo r reading. Respondents w ith more formal education read fo r pieasure and re la x a tio n , fo r con­ versation w ith oth ers, self-improvement, fo r p ra c tic a l in fo rm atio n, and fo r other reasons in contrast to those w ith less education., Chi-square tested the re la tio n s h ip between sex differences and purposes fo r reading. s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. Of the e ig h t chi-squares computed, one was (See Table 4.45) Sex diffe ren ces and purposes fo r reading were not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t fo r the f o l ­ lowing: f i 11ed a s p ir itu a l need, provided pleasure or re la x a tio n , self-improvement, helped to avoid boredom, helped to provide informa­ tio n concerning the p ra c tic a l demands o f d a ily liv in g , re la te d to a hobby, or other reasons. Table 4.45. Purposes fo r reading—conversation w ith others—fo r males and females. Number o f Respondents Sex Conversation w ith Others No Yes Males 89% 11% 55 Females 75% 25% 194 Chi-square = 4.828; d . f . = 1; ( p < .05) There were s ig n ific a n t diffe ren ces between males and fe ­ males and purposes fo r reading. Women, more than men, more often read in order to converse w ith other persons. Chi-square also s t a t is t ic a lly tested purposes fo r reading and m a rita l status groups. Of the e ig h t chi-squares computed, one 81 was s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. (See Table 4.46) The re la tio n s h ip between m a rita l status and purposes fo r reading was not s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t p e rtin e n t to the fo llo w in g : f i l l e d a s p ir itu a l need, provided pleasure or re la x a tio n , used fo r conversation w ith o th e rs, self-improvement, helped to avoid boredom, helped to provide informa­ tio n concerning the p ra c tic a l demands o f d a ily liv in g , and other reasons. Table 4.46. Purpose fo r reading-—re la te d to a hobby—and m arital s ta tu s . M arital Status Related to a Hobby No Yes Married 94% 6% 18 Single 94% 6% 54 Divorced 100% 0% 6 Widowed 100% 0% 170 Number o f Respondents Chi-square = 9.938; d . f . = 3; (p < .01) Purposes fo r reading (re la te d to a hobby) and m arita l status were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. Divorced and widowed respond­ ents most o fte n did not read fo r purposes re la te d to a hobby than did respondents in the other m a rita l status groups. S im ila rly , chi-square was used to te s t purposes fo r reading and occupational groups. Of the e ig h t chi-squares computed, one was s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t-h e lp e d to provide inform ation concerning the p ra c tic a l demands o f d a ily 1iv in g — (see Table 4.47). The re la ­ tio n s h ip between purposes fo r reading and former occupation was not 82 s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t fo r f i l l e d a s p ir itu a l need, provided pleasure or re la x a tio n , used fo r conversation w ith others, s e lf improvement, helped to avoid boredom, re la te d to a hobby, or other reasons. There were s ig n ific a n t re la tio n sh ip s between purposes fo r reading (helped to provide inform ation concerning the p ra c tic a l de­ mands o f d a ily liv in g ) and occupational groups. Self-employed persons more often read fo r purposes th a t helped to provide inform ation con­ cerning the p ra c tic a l demands o f d a ily liv in g than the others occupational groups. Farmers were le a st lik e ly , in con trast to the other occupational groups, to read fo r such a purpose. Table 4.47. Purposes fo r reading—helped to provide inform ation concerning the practicaTaemands o f d a ily li v in g . Former Occupation P ra ctica l Demands o f D aily L ivin g No Yes Number o f Respondents Housewife 86% 14% 72 U n skilled Labor 90% 10% 20 C le ric a l 69% 31% 39 Professional 71% 29% 69 Farmer 100% 0% 6 Sales 82% 18% 17 Self-employed 60% 40% 10 S k ille d Labor 69% 31% 16 Chi-square = 12.482; d . f . = 7; (p < .05) 83 Summary Purposes fo r reading were re la te d to age, education, sex, m arital sta tu s, and former occupation. read to f i l l a s p ir itu a l need. Older respondents more often Persons w ith more formal education read fo r pleasure and re la x a tio n , conversation w ith o th e rs, s e lfimprovement, p ra c tic a l inform ation fo r d a ily liv in g , and fo r other reasons. others. Women, more often than men, read in order to converse w ith Divorced and widowed respondents were le a s t 1ik e ly to read fo r purposes re la te d to a hobby. Self-employed respondents were more lik e ly to read fo r inform ation concerning the p ra c tic a l demands o f d a ily liv in g than the other occupation groups. Question 8 Are reasons fo r re s tric te d reading re la te d to age, educa­ tio n , sex, former occupation, and m arital status o f respondents? The respondents were asked what fa c to rs prevented them from reading more. gories: The responses were grouped according to ten cate­ no de sire , read too slo w ly, large-type m aterials not a v a ila b le , eye problems, desired reading m aterial not a v a ila b le , get too sleepy, watch T .V ., hobbies, other social a c t iv it ie s , and other reasons. The t - t e s t s t a t is t ic a lly tested the d iffe re n ce s between mean ages o f the respondents and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. The t-values and 1evels o f sig n ifica n ce are presented in Table 4.48. As an example, 52 o f the respondents w ith a mean age o f 80.57 years indicated they did (Yes) feel "no desire" to read more. In c o n tra s t, 197 respondents w ith a mean age o f 79.80 indicated they did not (No) feel the "no de sire " choice applied to them. Table 4.48. Mean ages o f the respondents and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. Reasons fo r R estricted Reading No desire Mean Ages o f Respondents and Number o f Respondents No Yes t-v a lu e N = 197 79.80 N = 52 80.57 1.188 N = 233 79.97 N = 16 79.81 .947 Large-type m aterials not a va ila b le N = 239 79.86 N = 10 82.40 1.192 Eye problems N = 135 78.42 N = 114 81.78 4.118* Desired m aterials not a va ila b le N = 242 80.02 N= 7 78.00 .888 Get too sleepy N = 214 80.28 N = 35 78.02 1.880** N = 215 80.24 N = 34 78.20 1.677** N = 206 80.03 N = 43 79.60 .392 N = 220 80.00 N = 29 79.62 .297 N = 216 79.97 N = 33 79.90 .510 Read too slowly Watch te le v is io n Hobbies Other social a c tiv itie s Other reasons *(p < .0005) * * (p < .05) Table 4.49. Mean years o f education and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. Reasons fo r Restricted Reading No desire Mean Years o f Education and Number o f Respondents No Yes t-v a lu e N = 197 11.76 N = 52 11.94 .319 N = 233 11.77 N = 16 12.25 .523 Large-type m aterials not a va ila b le N = 239 11.77 N = 10 12.40 .545 Eye problems N = 135 12.36 N = 242 11.74 N = 114 11.14 2.763* N= 7 13.85 1.568 N = 214 11.89 N = 35 11.22 1.040 N = 215 11.84 N = 34 11.55 .434 N = 206 11.66 N = 43 12.46 1.356 N = 220 11.66 N = 29 12.82 1.670** N = 216 11.62 N = 33 12.93 2.000** Read too slowly Desired m aterials not a va ila b le Get too sleepy Watch te le v is io n Hobbies Other social a c t iv itie s Other reasons *(p < .01) Table 4.50. Sex Males Females ** (p < .05) Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—la rge -typ e m ate rials not a v a ila b le —between males and females. Large-type p r in t not a va ila b le No Yes Number o f Respondents 100% 0% 55 95% 5% 194 Chi-square = 2.954; d . f . = 1 ; (p < .05) 87 There was a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between sex differences and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. Women, more often than men, indicated th a t s u ffic ie n t large-type m aterials were not a va ila b le . Table 4.51. Reasons fo r re s tric te d rea ding --other social a c t iv it ie s — between males and females. Other Social A c tiv itie s No Yes Sex Number o f Respondents Males 96% 5% 55 Females 86% 14% 194 Chi-square = 4.402; d . f . = 1 ; (p < .05) There was a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between sex differences and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading which pertained to "other social a c t iv it ie s . " Women were more lik e ly than men to l i s t "other social a c t iv itie s " as reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. Table 4.52. Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—other reasons—between males and females. Number o f Respondents Sex Other Reasons No Yes Males 94% 6% 55 Females 86% 14% 194 Chi-square = 3.734; d . f . = 1 (p < .05) There was a s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between sex differences and reasons fo r re s tric te d reading which pertained to "o th er reasons." Women were more lik e ly than men to l i s t "other reasons" as related to reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. 88 Chi-square s t a t is t ic a lly tested reasons fo r re s tric te d reading p e rta in in g to former occupation. Of the ten chi-squares computed, three were s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. (See Table 4.53, 4.54 and 4.55) Table 4.53. Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—eye problems—and occupation groups. Former Occupation Eye Problems No Yes Housewife 42 % 58% 72 U nskilled Labor 50% 50% 20 C le ric a l 62% 38% 39 Professional 68% 32% 69 .83% 17% 6 Sales 59% 41% 17 Self-employed 30% 70% 10 S k ille d Labor 38% 62% 16 Farmer Number of Respondents Chi-square = 17.283; d . f . = 7; (p < .01) There were s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between reasons fo r re s tric te d reading (eye problems) and former occupations. S e lf- employed respondents were more 1ik e ly to experience eye problems which re s tric te d reading than the other occupations. Farmers were le a s t lik e ly to l i s t "eye problems" as a reason fo r re s tric te d reading than the other occupation groups. There were s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between reasons fo r re s tric te d reading (get too sleepy) and occupation groups. U nskilled laborers were more 1ik e ly to l i s t "get too sleepy" as a reason fo r 89 Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—get too sleepy—and occupation groups. Occupation Groups Get too Sleepy No Yes Housewife 90% 10% 73 U nskilled Labor 65% 35% 20 C le ric a l 82% 18% 39 Professional 00 00 Table 4.54. Number o f Respondents 12% 69 Farmer 83% 17% 6 Sales 76% 24% 17 Self-employed 100% 0% 10 S k ille d Labor 94% 6% 16 Chi-square = 12.956; d . f . = 7 ; (p < .05) Table 4.55. Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading—oth er reasons—and occupation groups. Occupation Groups Other Reasons No Yes Housewife 94% 6% 72 100% 0% 20 C le ric a l 90% 10% 39 Professional 74% 26% 69 Farmer 100% 0% 6 Sales 82% 18% 17 Self-employed 100% 0% 10 S k ille d Labor 81% 19% 16 U nskilled Labor Chi-square = 18.889; d . f . = 7; (p < .005) Number o f Respondents 90 re s tric te d reading than the other occupation groups. Self-employed respondents were le a s t lik e ly to suggest th a t "get too sleepy" was a reason fo r re s tric te d reading than the other occupation groups. There were s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between reasons fo r re s tric te d reading (other reasons) and occupation groups. Profes­ sional groups were more lik e ly to l i s t "other reasons" fo r re s tric te d reading than the other occupational groups. Respondents whose former occupations were u n skille d labor o r self-employed were le a s t lik e ly to l i s t "other reasons" fo r re s tric te d reading in contrast to the other occupation groups. Chi-square also s t a t is t ic a lly tested reasons fo r re s tric te d reading and m a rita l status. Of the ten chi-squares computed, one c h i- square was s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. Table 4.56. (See Table 4.56) Reasons fo r re s tric te d re a d in g --other social a c t iv it ie s — and m arita l status groups. M arital Status Groups Other Social A c tiv itie s No Yes Married 89% 11% 18 Single 83% 17% 54 Divorced 50% 50% 6 Widowed 91% 9% 170 Number o f Respondents Chi-square = 11.182; d . f . = 3; (p < .01) There were s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip s between reasons fo r re s tric te d reading (other social a c t iv itie s ) and m arita l status. Divorced persons were more lik e ly to in d ica te th a t "other social ac­ t i v i t i e s " re s tric te d reading than the other m a rita l status groups. 91 Widowed respondents were le a s t lik e ly to consider "other social ac­ t i v i t i e s " as r e s tr ic tin g reading in con trast to the other m arital status groups. Summary Reasons fo r re s tric te d reading were re la te d to age, educa­ tio n , sex, former occupation and m a rita l sta tu s. Older respondents and self-employed respondents most often 1iste d "eye problems" as reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. Women were more lik e ly than men to in d ica te th a t large-type m a te ria ls, other social a c t iv it ie s , and other reasons re s tric te d reading. U nskilled laborers most often lis te d "get too sleepy" as a reason fo r re s tric te d reading. Respondents in the "p ro fe ssio n a l" former occupation group more often than the other occupation groups c ite d "other reasons1 to explain re s tric te d reading. Interview Questions The w rite r did not submit the answers p e rtin e n t to the interview s to s t a t is t ic a l analysis. The taped interview s were, however, analyzed by the researcher and the answers o f the respondents categorized. Question 1 How could your reading needs be met more adequately today? The respondents discussed many variables p e rtin e n t to the question. In general, however, th e ir conclusions were summarized in to fou r major needs: (1) the p u b lic lib r a r y should increase e ffo r ts 93 In general, the respondents f e l t th a t i t was extremely d i f f i c u l t to in te re s t a person in reading who previously was not in te re s te d . A summary as to some suggestions fo r in te re s tin g persons in reading a c tiv itie s is presented in Table 4.57. Table 4.57. In te re s t more older persons in reading. Ways to In te re s t Persons In Reading N = 66 Percentage o f Agreement or Disagreement No Yes Reduce prices in la rg e -p rin t Readers1 Digest magazines 10$ 90$ Provide high in te re s t low vocabulary m aterials 90$ 10$ Survey in te re s ts o f older persons 70$ 30$ Concentrate on ch ild re n to develop an in te re s t in reading when young 5$ 95$ 10$ 90$ Reading is a life - lo n g in te re s t and 1i t t l e can be done to in te re s t those who d is lik e reading Question 4 Some lib r a r ie s and u n iv e rs itie s provide courses and reading programs to help the younger a d u lt prepare fo r retire m en t. What kinds o f problems do you fe e l the younger a d u lt should be prepared fo r a fte r he re tire s ? The respondents indicated th a t the problems o f retirem ent g re a tly vary between in d iv id u a ls . The respondents w ith 100 percent 94 agreement indicated th a t programs which promote a v a rie ty o f in te r e s ts --e s p e c ia lly in reading and the a rts -^ c o n trtb u te . to-adjustment. in retire m en t. They stated fu rth e r th a t younger adults need to learn how to depend on th e ir own inner resources. As one respondent in d i­ cated, " I t would appear th a t younger adults are so e x te rn a lly o rien te d, they c a n 't stand th e ir own company." Summary fo r Interview Questions The major reading needs mentioned by the respondents were fo r the pu blic lib r a r y to increase e ffo rts to in te re s t the older per­ son in lib r a r y services, to provide more la rg e -p rin t books, to main­ ta in lib r a rie s in each home, and to provide a fresh supply o f books. The old e r person does want to become involved w ith pu blic 1ib ra ry programs. In general, the respondents stated th a t i t was extremely d i f f i c u l t to in te re s t a person in reading who previously was not in te re ste d . In d iv id u a ls might become in te reste d in reading i f th e ir reading in te re s ts were determined, la rg e -p rin t books a v a ila b le , and m aterials o f high in te re s t and low vocabulary provided. The respond­ ents indicated th a t a h e lp fu l way fo r the younger a d u lt to prepare fo r retirem ent was to re ly more on his own inner resources. .Also, i t was important fo r the younger a d u lt to develop a v a rie ty o f i n t ­ erests e sp e cia lly in hobbies, reading, and performing a rts . CHAPTER V CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Introd uctio n The purpose o f th is study was to id e n tify the le is u re -tim e reading behaviors o f persons liv in g w ith in Homes fo r the Aged in Kent County, Michigan. The study id e n tifie d the reading behaviors o f the older reader by means o f a structured survey questionnaire and taped in te rvie w s. The data p e rtin e n t to reading behaviors were then sta ­ t i s t i c a l l y re la te d to the demographic c h a ra c te ris tic s o f age, education, sex, former occupation, m arital sta tu s, and past lo ca tio n o f residence. The present chapter is organized as fo llo w s: 1. 2. 3. Major re s u lts and discussion Im plications Recommendations Major Results and Discussions 1. There was a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and v a rie ty in reading. Per­ sons who spent more time in reading a c t iv itie s tended to read more categories o f books, magazine to p ic s , and parts o f the newspaper. 2. There was a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between v a rie ty in reading and sex, education, former occupation, and m arita l s ta tu s . a. Women demonstrated a greater v a rie ty in reading be­ haviors than men. 95 96 b. Respondents w ith more years o f formal education read w ith more v a rie ty than those w ith less education. c. Persons w ith the former occupations o f professional (teacher, lawyer, m in is te r, nurse, a d m in istra tive w ith a college degree), c le r ic a l (secretary and o ffic e w orkers), and sales read w ith more v a rie ty than other occupational groups. d. Unmarried and widowed respondents read w ith more v a rie ty than married or divorced persons. indicated a greater in te re s t in hobbies. Married persons The low number o f divorced persons studied may account fo r a sampling bias which affected the s t a t is t ic a l re s u lts . 3. There was a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the time spent in le is u re -tim e reading and education and former occu­ pations o f the respondents. a. Respondents w ith more years o f formal education spend greater periods o f time in reading a c t iv itie s than respondents w ith fewer years o f formal education. F urther, the older person prefers to read fo r many short periods o f time ra th e r than fo r long, sustained periods o f tim e. b. Persons w ith the former occupations o f p ro fe s s io n a l, c le r ic a l, and self-employed spend more time in reading a c tiv itie s than persons w ith other former occupations. 4. There was a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the use o f lib r a ry services and education, sex, former occupation and m a rita l status. a. Persons liv in g in homes fo r the aged in Kent County re ly on fo u r major sources fo r books: (1) lib r a ry in the home, (2) book c a rt supplied w ith books from the pu blic 1ib ra ry , (3) a book m ailing service from the pu blic lib r a r y , (4) borrowing from frie n d s . b. women. Men tend to purchase more books from stores than Women, in co n tra st to men, obtain most o f th e ir books through the use o f m ailing services, borrowing from frie n d s , g i f t s , and book club memberships. c. Professional occupational groups, obtain most o f th e ir books from store purchases, v is it s to the public lib r a r y , borrowing from frie n d s , and as g if t s . Respondents who were self-employed indicated the major sources used to obtain books were purchases from the store and book c a rt services in the home. Persons w ith a former occupation o f a c le ric a l nature reported th e ir sources fo r books included book c a rt in the home, v is it s to the p u b lic lib r a r y , books borrowed from frie n d s , and g if t s . Respondents c la s s ifie d as s k ille d labor reported th e ir primary sources fo r books were purchases from the store and g if t s . Persons in the un skille d labor occupational group stated th e ir major source fo r books was purchases from stores. d. Married persons tend to use book c a rt services and purchase books from the sto re . Unmarried and widowed re ­ spondents obtain books as g if t s and by borrowing from frie n d s . Divorced persons receive books as g if t s . e. In general, respondents do not go to the p u b lic lib r a r y fo r books. The most often c ite d reason was the lack o f tra n sp o rta tio n to the public lib r a r y . The data o f the study supported th a t the conscious use o f pu blic lib r a r y services was s lig h tly greater among the respondents w ith more formal education, women, and professional occupational groups. f. The m a jo rity o f the eleven homes do have reading rooms; however, respondents p re fe r to use th e ir own rooms fo r reading. The a v a ila b ility o f books in each home seems to be more s ig n ific a n t to reading behavior than where read­ ing occurs. g. The m a jo rity o f respondents do know about la rg e - p r in t books. In general, the respondents do use la rg e -p rin t books and no s ig n ific a n t differences were found between the use o f la rg e -p rin t books and age, sex, education, and m arit a l sta tu s. Differences did occur among occupational groups which require c la r if ic a tio n . Farmers p rim a rily read la rg e - p r in t e d itio n s o f the B ib le . The other occupational groups read a combination o f la rg e -p rin t e d itio n s o f the B ible and other la rg e -p rin t books. Sales groups were le a st lik e ly to read la rg e -p rin t books. The most often c ite d reasons fo r not reading la rg e -p rin t books were "not needed" and "no in te r e s t." Although those responses were most often indicated on the survey question­ n a ire , the researcher also found more subtle reasons f o r not 99 reading la rg e -p rin t books through group in te rvie w s: (1) la rg e -p rin t books are so large and bulky th a t o ld e r persons fin d holding them extremely d i f f i c u l t ; (2) the use o f la rg e -p rin t books is an admission o f eye problems and coincident w ith a fu rth e r m anifestation o f aging; and (3) la rg e -p rin t books are 1im ited in supply and scope o f subject matter a t the present time. 5. There was a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between periods o f in te n sive reading and sex, education, and past lo ca tio n o f residence. a. From an ove rall view point, there was an increase in reading behavior w ith a corresponding increase o f chrono­ lo g ic a l age. The fin d in g s p e rtin e n t to the sample fo r the present study refutes the contention, concerning a d u lt readers in general, th a t reading behaviors decrease as persons grow o ld e r. b. men. Women are more c o n s is te n tly life - lo n g readers than Women read more in te n s iv e ly than men during the period 6-20 years. I t is in te re s tin g to note however, th a t a t age 65 or o ld e r, no s ig n ific a n t differences occur between men and women as to in te nsive reading. c. Respondents w ith greater formal education read more in te n s iv e ly throughout a ll age groups. d. Respondents from ru ra l areas spend less time in reading a c t iv itie s across age groups than do persons whose former residences were in urban or suburban areas. 100 Persons from ru ra l areas do increase in th e ir reading behavior in the age group o f 65 years or o ld e r. The re ­ searcher, a fte r in te rvie w in g the respondents, concludes th a t the a v a ila b ility o f reading m aterials and i ncre ased fre e time do c o n trib u te to th a t phenomena. 6. T h e re w as a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between the rernenized therapeutic value o f re a d ing, and education and former occupation. a. Respondents w ith greater formal education indicated th a t reading helped to solve problems, re lie ve d psychological tensions, or ju s t helped the respondents fe e l b e tte r about themselves. b. Persons who were self-employed most freq ue ntly indicated reading as having a therapeutic value. A ll other occupational groups, w ith the exception o f farm ers, also recognized reading as having some therapeutic value. 7. There was a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n s h ip between purpose fo r reading and age, sex, educal^m , f o r m e ^ ^ and m a rita l s ta tu s . a. The respondents were directed to w rite the to p ic o f a book o r magazine a r t ic le th a t was read and considered in te re s tin g . The most often c ite d to p ics were biographies, re lig io n , tr a v e l, and lig h t f ic t io n . b. There were th irte e n respondents (5 percent) who in ­ dicated no to p ics were im portant or in te re s tin g . often c ite d reasons fo r checking th a t item The most were eye problems 101 which p ro h ib it the reading o f books and magazines or a lack o f in te re s t in reading. s p ir itu a l need. Older respondents read to f i l l a No other s t a t is t ic a lly s ig n ific a n t d i f f e r ­ ences between age and purposes fo r reading were determined. c. Respondents w ith more formal educational generally read fo r "re la xa tio n and pleasure," "conversation w ith o th e rs ," "self-? improvement," "p ra c tic a l in fo rm a tio n ," and "o th er reasons." The categories p e rtin e n t to "other reasons" consisted o f reading fo r p o litic a l inform ation, in te re s tin g experience which related to respondents' ea rly l i f e , an in te re s t in p e rs o n a litie s , and h is to ric a l in te re s ts . Persons w ith more education were le a s t interested in "reading to f i l l a s p ir itu a l need." d. men. Women discuss books w ith other persons more than F urther, the researcher determined in in terview ing the respondents th a t the borrow ing.of books from, frie n d s d ir e c tly re la te to discussion o f books. Unmarried and widowed per­ sons e sp e cia lly use the "borrow jng.of bboks. from frie n d s "-a s a means to communicate and in te ra c t w ith other persons. Reading a c t iv it ie s , th e re fo re , seem to serve a social pur­ pose in retirem ent homes. e. Married and unmarried respondents most often read fo r purposes re la te d to a hobby. No widowed or divorced persons indicated they read fo r purposes re la te d to a hobby. f. Self-employed respondents more than any other occu­ pational group read to obtain inform ation concerning the p ra c tic a l demands o f d a ily liv in g . 102 8. There was a d ire c t and s ig n ific a n t re la tio n a h ip between reasons f o r re s tric te d reading and age, education, sex, former occupa­ t io n , and m a rita l s ta tu s . a. Older respondents l i s t eye problems as the major reason fo r re s tric te d reading. Younger respondents indicated th a t watching te le v is io n and g e ttin g too sleepy r e s tr ic ts reading a c t iv itie s . b. Eye problems le a st a ffe c t the re s tric te d reading behaviors o f those w ith more education. Respondents w ith more formal education indicated th a t, although they do spend large amounts o f time reading, they are also interested in such social a c t iv itie s as: attending le c tu re s , tra v e lin g , church, games, and h ikin g . Persons w ith less formal educa­ tio n stated th a t "eye problems" were the major reasons fo r re s tric te d reading. c. Women, in contrast to men, are more s o c ia lly in ­ volved in a v a rie ty o f a c t iv itie s . As such, women respond­ ents would in d ica te th a t those a c t iv itie s r e s t r ic t reading tim e. d. Eye problems are fre q u e n tly lis te d by housewives, s k ille d la bo rers, self-employed, and u n skille d laborers as the reason fo r re s tric te d reading. Professional groups tend to be involved w ith other social a c t iv itie s and l i s t th a t fa c to r as the reason fo r re s tric te d reading. e. M arried, divorced, and unmarried respondents in d i­ cate reasons fo r re s tric te d reading as: hobbies, church, card games, tr a v e l, and—bel ieve i t or not—attending court tr ia ls . Toa 9. At th e -in te rv ie w sessions, the respondents indicated th a t reading needs could be more adequately met in retirem ent homes by: (1) the pu blic lib r a r y going to the olde r person w ith reading programs, (2) increased la rg e -p rin t e d itio n s o f books and magazines, and (3) an increased supply o f fresh books in the home. As one re ­ spondent stated, "I'm sick o f these goody-goody books and re-reading the books I lik e . 10. Book supplies need a f a c e - lif t in g in the homes." The persons interviewed f e l t th a t i t was extremely d i f f i c u l t to in te re s t non-readers in e x is tin g reading programs because reading is a life - lo n g process. The most s ig n ific a n t fa c to r in developing th e ir reading in te re s ts was seeing parents read. 11. The respondents, w ith 100 percent agreement, indicated th a t programs which promote a v a rie ty o f in te re s ts —e sp e cia lly reading and the a rts —co n trib u te to adjustment in the la te r years. The researcher found th a t persons who engaged in reading a c t iv itie s were also more s o c ia lly involved. d ie . As one person in d ica te d , "I'm here to No question about that.' I do much reading, get involved w ith 1i f e , and re ly on n\y own inner resources." 12. The researcher concluded th a t homes w ith the most via b le reading programs were those which had 1ib ra rie s managed by the residents themselves. Im plications I t would appear from the data p e rtin e n t to the present study th a t education is a s ig n ific a n t va ria b le which influences the reading behaviors o f older persons. A consistent pattern throughout 104 th is study indicates th a t o ld e r persons w ith more formal education tend to spend more time in reading a c t iv itie s and read w ith greater v a rie ty than those w ith less formal education. The evidence also seems to in d ica te th a t older persons do spend many leisure^hours in reading a c t iv itie s . I t seems possible, th e re fo re , th a t reading a c tiv itie s do not decrease a fte r persons re ­ tir e . The respondents, a t le a s t in the present study, co n siste n tly emphasized the importance o f reading as a le i sure-time a c t iv ity . A fte r an examination o f the survey re s u lts p e rtin e n t to v a rie ty in reading and discussions w ith the respondents, the im p li­ cations are th a t o ld e r persons do read w ith great v a rie ty . I t appears lo g ic a l, th e re fo re , th a t the reading needs o f the aged can best be determined when th a t group is studied separately from the a d u lt reader in general. I t would also seem th a t reading serves a social fu n ctio n in homes fo r the aged. Many respondents indicated they shared and d is ­ cussed books w ith one another. The w r ite r believes th a t such social behavior provided a means fo r the olde r person to f u l f i l l a need fo r social in te ra c tio n . The evidence presented in th is study seems to r e fle c t th a t lib r a r y extension programs and services are appreciated by olde r per­ sons. The respondents co n siste n tly re la te d to the w rite r than tra n s ­ p o rta tio n problems p ro hibite d them from tra v e lin g d ir e c tly to the lib r a r y . As such, the lib r a r y services o f providing book m a ilin g , book c a rts , and special services re la te d to helping persons w ith eye 105 problems were especially h e lp fu l. One respondent s ta te d , "When the lib r a r y tears down it s w a lls and goes to the people, the lib r a r y be­ comes an in s titu tio n fo r a ll persons in s o c ie ty ." Senior c itiz e n s need more la rg e -p rin t e d itio n s o f books and magazines. The la rg e -p rin t e d itio n s , however, should be abridged in scope and manageable in book size. The respondents indicated to the w r ite r th a t many la rg e -p rin t books are ju s t too d i f f i c u l t to hold. A lso, there is not enough reading v a rie ty s p e c ific to la rg e -p rin t books. Residents liv in g in the homes should supervise the lib r a r y programs. I t appeared to the w r ite r th a t in homes where the residents managed the home lib r a r ie s a greater enthusiasm fo r reading existe d. I t also appeared to the w r ite r th a t when residents managed the l i ­ bra rie s in the home, those resident lib ra ria n s f e l t they provided a useful service. As such, they were e n thu siastic about the importance o f reading and made e ffo rts to share th e ir enthusiasm w ith other older persons in the home. Recommendations fo r Further Research 1. There is a need fo r fu rth e r research concerning the reading needs o f e ld e rly persons not liv in g in retirem ent homes. 2. Greater research e ffo rts are needed to determine the therapeutic value o f reading. Further research is needed to more c le a rly id e n tify the fa cto rs p e rtin e n t to reading which help the older person ad ju st to the problems o f d a ily liv in g . 106 3. There 1s also a need fo r research which more c le a rly out­ lin e s the fu n ctio n o f parents in developing life - lo n g in te re s ts in reading. 4. Research is s im ila rly needed to determine the reasons fo r some older persons not using pu blic lib r a r y services. 5. Research applicable to old e r persons liv in g in nursing homes is needed. The medical problems o f such persons may create special reading needs and interests. 6. There is a need fo r research which compares the reading behaviors o f olde r persons liv in g in retire m en t homes which are managed by re lig io u s organizations and those managed through p u b lic funds. 7. Research is needed in retirem ent homes concerning the a ttitu d e s o f adm inistrators towards p u b lic lib r a r y services in the homes. 8. More research studies are needed to determine how la rg e - p r in t books could be made less bulky and more manageable. 9. There is also a need fo r more research which would re ­ veal the differences in reading needs between women and men in r e t ir e ­ ment homes when education is held constant. 10. Research studies are also needed s p e c ific to the reading environments w ith in retirem ent homes. Variables should be studied w ith in the home environments which provide and create incentives fo r reading among older persons. 11. There is a need fo r a greater c la r if ic a t io n as to the fun ction o f u n iv e rs itie s in providing s p e c ific programs in reading which appeal to olde r persons and promote life - lo n g reading h a bits. 12. Training programs should be researched which provide a via b le means to tr a in older persons to run th e ir own lib r a r ie s in the retirem ent homes. 13. Research s t i l l needs to be conducted which id e n tifie s reasons fo r the fa c t th a t women read more than men. BIBLIOGRAPHY BIBLIOGRAPHY Asheim, Lester E. "Research in Mass Communication and A d ult Reading," L ib ra ry Trends, VI (October, 1957), pp. 132-140. A u stin, Garry R. "N o n -fictio n Best .S e lle rs : Types and Trends." Journal o f Social Psychology, XXXVIII (August, 1953), pp. 141-143. B altes, Paul B. and Schaie, K. Warner. Life-Span Developmental Psy­ chology. New York: Academic Press, 1973. Berelson, Bernard. "The L ib ra ry 's P u b lic ." A Forum on the Public L ib ra ry In q u iry . 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Mass Communication: A Research B ib liogra ph y. Santa Barbara: The Glendessary Press, 1968. J a v e lin , M u rie l. ie s , I "Services to the Senior C itiz e n ."American (February, 1970), pp. 133-137. L ib ra r­ 110 Kanner, E ll io t t . "The Impact o f Gerontological Concepts on P rin c ip le s o f L ib ra ria n s h ip ." Unpublished Ph.D. d is s e rta tio n , Univer­ s ity o f Wisconsin, 1972. Kleemier, Robert W. Aging and Le isu re. Press, 1961. New York: La zarfe ld, Paul F. Radio and the Printed Page. Sloan, and Pearch, 1940. Lazarfeld, Paul F. and Kendall, P a tric ia . New York: P re n tic e -H a ll, 1948. Oxford U n ive rs ity New York: D uel!, Radio L is te ning in America. LaBrie, Henry I I I and Zima, W illiam . "D ire ctio n a l Quandaries o f the Black Press in the United S tates." Journalism Quarterly,, XLVIII (W inter, 1971), pp. 640-644. Lee, Robert E. Continuing:Education fo r Adults Through the American Public L ib ra ry . Chicago: American L ib ra ry A ssociation, 1966. L in k, Henry C. and Hopf, Harry. People and Books. Manufacturer's I n s titu te , 1946^ New York: Book Long, Fern. "Live Long and Like I t Libra ry Club—The Cleveland Public L ib ra ry ." L ib ra ry Trends, XVII (J u ly , 1968), pp. 68-71. Lyman, Helen H. L ib ra ry M aterials in Service to the A d u ltjje w Reader. Chicago: American L ib ra ry A ssociation, 1973. McElroy, E lizabeth. "Subject V a riety in Adult Reading: I . Factors Related to V a riety in Reading." The L ib ra ry Q uarterly.* XXXVIII (A p r il, 1968), pp. 154-167. . "Subject V a riety in A dult Reading: I I . C h a ra cte ristics o f Readers o f Ten-Categories o f Books." The Mbiracy. Q u a rte rly, XXXVIII, (J u ly , 1968), pp. 261-269. McQueen, Robert. "Communication Processes w ith the Aged and w ith in the Hospital S e ttin g ." Western Care, X III (June, 1968), pp. 8-11. Michigan Department o f Public Health. D irectory o f H ospita ls, Nursing Care F a c ilitie s and.Homes fo r the Aged. Lansing: Bureau o f Health F a c ilit ie s , 1974. Larson, Carl M. "The Struggle o f Paddock P u blicatio ns Versus F ie ld E nterprises, In c ." Journalism Q u a rte rly, XXXXVIII (W inter, 1971), pp. 700-706. Leigh, Robert D. The Public L ib ra ry in the United S tates. Columbia U n ive rsity Press, 1950. New York: Parker, E. B. and Paisley, W. J. Patterns o f A d ult Inform ation Seek­ in g . Stanford: In s titu te fo r Communications Research Stanford U n iv e rs ity , 1966. Pei 1, Margaret. "L ib ra ry Use by Low Income Chicago F a m ilie s." L ib ra ry Q ua rte rly, XXXIII (October, 1963), pp. 329-333. Phinney, Eleanor. "The Libra ry and the Aqinq." L ib ra ry Journal, LXXVIII, (November, 1953), pp. 1875-1879. R ile y , M atilda White. Aging and S o ciety. Vol. I : An Inventory o f Research Findinqs. New York: Russell Saqe Foundation, 1968. Romani, Dorothy. "Reading In te re sts and Needs o f Older People." L ib ra ry Trends, XXI (January, 1973), pp. 390-403. _______ . "Guidelines fo r L ib ra ry Service to the In s titu tio n a liz e d A ging." American L ib ra rie s , I (March, 1970), pp. 286-289. Schramm, W ilbur and White, David. "Age, Education, and the Economic Status as Factors in Newspaper Reading," Mass Communica­ t io n . Edited by W ilbur Schramm, Urbana: U n iv e rs ity o f I l l i n o i s Press, 1949. Schramm, W ilbur. "Aging and Mass Communication." Vol. I I , Aging and the Professions. Edited by M atilda White R ile y. New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1969. _______ . "Why Adults Read." A d ult Reading: The F i f t y - f i f t h Year­ book o f the National Society fo r the Study o f Education, Part I I . Edited by Nelson B. Henry. Chicago: U n ive rsity o f “Chicago Press, 1956. Steinberg, Heinz. "Books and Readers as a Subject o f Research in Europe and America." In te rn a tio n a l Social Science Journal, XXIV (1972), pp. 745-753. Stone, W inifred. "L ib ra ry Service to the Aging." LXXXIV, (June, 1959), pp. 175-178. Tews, Ruth. "In tro d u c tio n ." pp. 97-105. L ib ra ry Jou rna l, L ib ra ry Trends, XI (October, 1962), T ib b its , C lark. Handbook o f Social Gerontology. U n ive rsity o f Chicago Press, 1960. Chicago: The 112 U.S. Department o f Health, Education.and W elfare. O ffic e o f Education, Bureau o f L ib ra rie s and Educational Technology. National Survey o f L ib ra ry Services to the Aging. Washington, D.C., V ainste in, Rose. "The Role of, the Public L ib ra ry in Education fo r the Aging." A d u lt Leadership, IX (May, I9 6 0 ), pp. 10-11. Wade, Serena and Schramm, W ilbur. "The Mass Media as Sources o f Public A ffa ir s , Science., and Health Knowledge." Public Opinion Q u a rte rly, XXXXVIII (W inter, 1971), pp. 197-209. Waples, Douglas; Berelson, Bernard; and Bradshaw, F ra n klin . "The E ffects o f Reading." Mass Communication. Edited by W ilbur Schramm. Urbana: U n iv e rs ity o f I l l i n o i s Press, 1960. Waples, Douglas. The L ib ra ry . Press, 1937. Chicago: U n iv e rs ity o f Chicago APPENDICES APPENDIX I READING SURVEY 1. How much time do you spend in le is u re -tim e reading per week: per week 2. What categories o f books have you read during the past year? ( ) Did not read books (Why?) ________________________ ___ 3. ) mysteries ( ) poetry ( ) science f ic t io n ) westerns ( ) self-improvement ) humor ( ) a rt ( ) music ) romance ( ) h is to ry ( ) science o r tech­ nology ) adventure ( ) biographies ( ) r e lig io n (other than B ible) ) business ) p o litic s ( ) sports ( ) gardening ( ) health or fa m ily care ) plays ( ) tra v e l ( ) cookbooks ) B ible ( ) other (s p e c ify ) ( ) re p a ir ( ) h o bb ie s/cra fts What magazine to p ics do you u su a lly read? 1 ' Do not read magazines (Why?) _______ sports ( ) r e lig io n ( ) health or fa m ily care hobbies ( ) p e rs o n a litie s ( ) conservation homemaking ( ) romance ( ) curre nt events re p a ir ( ) crime s to rie s ( ) self-improvement tra ve l ( ) business ( ) short s to rie s other (sp e cify) 4. What parts o f the newspaper do you usu ally read? ( ) Do not read newspapers (Why?) ____________ ( ) e d ito r ia ls ( ) comics ( ) lo ca l & community ( ( ) ) business social events ( ) advertisements ( , r6 "®“ tio n /s p o rts ( ) c la s s ifie d section ( } b1rths a[)d deaths ( ) other (sp e cify) _____ __________________ __________________ 5. 6. How do you obtain most o f your books? ( ) purchase from store ( ) loan from frie n d s ( ) v i s i t to p u b lic lib r a r y ( ) g if t s ( ) book c a rt service ( ) book club ( ) book m ailing from pu blic lib r a r y ( ) lib r a r y in the home How often do you use the services o f the pu blic lib r a r y to obtain reading m aterials? ( ) fre q u e n tly ( ) occasionally ( ) hardly ever ( ) never (Why?) __________________ ___________ ______ ________ 7. Is there a reading room in the home? I f yes, how often do you use it ? ( ) hardly ever ( ) yes ( ) fre q u e n tly 8. ( ) hardly ever ( ) freq ue ntly ( ) yes I f a v a ila b le , how often would you use it ? 9. _______ _____ () never (Why?) ________ Have you ever seen a large p r in t book? ( ) occasionally ( ) occasionally ( ) never (Why?) I f no, how often would you use i t i f provided? ( ) occasionally ( ) no ( ) hardly ever ( ) no ( ) fre q u e n tly ( ) never (why?) _ What is your education background? 10.During which ages in your l i f e , did you do the most reading? ( ) always, since ( ) 6-10 years ( ) 41-64 years ( ) 11-14 years ( ) 65 years o r olde r ( ) 15-20 years childhood ( ) 21-40 years 11. What is your age? 12. Sex o f respondent is : 13. What is your m a rita l status? ( ) Divorced years () Male ( ) Female ( ) Married ( ) Single ( ) Widowed 14. What was your occupation? 15. Where did you liv e during most o f your lif e ? ( ) urban area 16. ( ) ru ra l area ( ) suburban area How often do you fe e l th a t reading helps to solve a problem, re lie ve s many psychological tensions or ju s t helps you to feel b e tte r about yourself? ( ) freq ue ntly 17. _________________________ ( ) occasionally ( ) hardly ever ( ) never Think o f a book or magazine a r t ic le which youread during the past year th a t was extremely in te re s tin g or im portant to you. __________ ___________ _____________ What was the topic? Why was i t important or in te re stin g ? ( ) none im portant or in te re s tin g ( ) helped to avoid boredom ( ) f i l l e d a s p ir itu a l need ( ) helped to provide inform a- ( ) provide pleasure or re la x a tio n ( ) used fo r conversation w ith others ( ) s e lf improvement ( ) other (sp e cify) 18. p r a c t ic a f demandfof d a ily liv in g ( ) re la te d to a hobby _____________________ __________________ Many people say they would lik e to read more. you from reading more? What prevents ( ) no desire ( ) eye problems ( ) read too slow ly ( ) desired m aterial not a va ila b le ( ) large-type m aterials not a va ila b le ( ) get too sleepy ( ) enjoy other forms o f entertainm ent more (s p e c ify ) _______ ( ) other reasons (sp e cify) APPENDIX I I INTERVIEW QUESTIONS How could your reading needs be met more adequately today? A few p u b lic lib r a r ie s provide special services to older persons such as having o ld e r persons review books, bookmobiles and book m ailin g services. There are persons who fe e l th a t such programs are a waste o f time and olde r c itiz e n s ju s t want to be l e f t alone and not involved. a. Do you th in k the old e r person does want to get involved in lib r a r y services? b. What could be done to promote th a t involvement? Some o ld e r persons in d ica te th a t they are not interested in read­ ing because they have gone to school only a few years. What do you th in k lib ra ria n s or publishers could do to in te re s t such persons in reading? Some lib r a r ie s and u n iv e rs itie s provide courses and reading pro­ grams to help the younger a d u lt prepare fo r retire m en t. What kinds o f problems do you fe e l the younger a d u lt should be prepared fo r a fte r they re tire ?