Today, Russians have lost their status as the most reading nation in the world. Modern residents of Russia spend an average of seven hours a week on reading, as a result of which the palm in reading has passed to other countries that are quite unexpected in this rating.
Most Reading Countries
According to statistics cited by one of the world's leading companies, the book market research company NOP World, India has become the most reading country in the world, whose residents spend almost eleven hours a week on reading. The Indians are followed in descending order by the inhabitants of Thailand, China, the Philippines, Egypt, the Czech Republic, Russia, Sweden, France and Hungary.
It was not only Russians who distinguished themselves with indifference to reading - the British and Americans were not included in the top ten reading countries at all. According to the Associated Press – Ipsos for 2006, one in four US residents have not read a single book, while the average American reads only four books per year.
Most American readers tend to read fashion fiction and religious literature.
Similar studies in the UK have shown that interest in reading among British people continues to fall every year. More than 55% of the people surveyed admitted that they buy books not so much for reading as for replenishing their home library. Modern British people prefer playing computer games or watching popular TV programs over books.
Russian readers and their interests
According to the results of a survey conducted among Russians by the Public Opinion Foundation, three-quarters of the population of Russia reads relatively regularly. At the same time, every second Russian gives preference to the press, every third to books, every fourth to magazines, and 24% of the respondents said that they do not read anything. The most popular reading material among Russians is fiction, as well as reading about fashion, cooking, home improvement and a healthy lifestyle.
Also, the rating of reading favorite by Russians includes popular science texts, literature on the specialty, reference and educational literature, as well as religious publications.
Basically, the preferences of the majority of adult Russian citizens are determined by books from home libraries, inherited from the older generation. However, the new generation prefers to buy modern books or even use electronic readers (tablets), which save space and allow you to read freely both day and night. However, the researchers argue that these gadgets do not particularly affect the level of reading in Russia, therefore, one should not strongly hope for a change in the situation.
