Hong Kong’s poor reading habit ‘will affect ability to learn independently’ as survey shows almost a third have not read printed book in past year
- Lack of time and preferring to read online among the reasons given in Hong Kong Publishing Professional Society survey
Almost a third of Hongkongers have not read a printed book in the past year and among them, nearly half have never formed a reading habit, a survey has revealed.
The Hong Kong Publishing Professional Society interviewed 1,876 people by phone about their reading habits from January to March. The results, released on Thursday, found 589 people said they had not read a physical book in the past year. Some 286 interviewees said they never read printed books.
The main reasons given included lacking the time and preferring to read online.
Rebecca Chee Lai-wa, deputy head of the society, said: “Hong Kong as a metropolis should work harder to improve this.”
Chee expressed concerns about young interviewees who said they never had a reading habit.
“I’m worried about this because reading can help cultivate one’s thinking ability. Without the habit, young people will lack the ability of independent learning.”
Chee said print books were a better means to absorb knowledge, compared with online reading.
As for the 70 per cent of interviewees, or 1,300 people, who did read printed books, they read on average three hours per week, two books per month and bought five books a year, the survey found.
Literature and fiction was the most popular genre, preferred by 25.5 per cent of readers especially among young people under 18 years old.
Half said they read to gain knowledge while 30 per cent said they read for entertainment and relaxation.
About 65 per cent of interviewees said they read online for two hours a day on average, but only 13 per cent said they read e-books while the others read mainly news articles and social media.
To improve the reading habit, Chee stressed the importance of parents stimulating children’s interest by reading with them.
School libraries were also important in establishing students’ reading habits and needed more support from the government, she added.
