Ukrainians increase reading during full-scale war – survey
According to data, only 8% of Ukrainians were reading books daily in 2020, but now that number has risen to 17%. There has been a noticeable increase in the frequency of reading in Ukrainian as well.
This is evidenced by the results of the study "How Ukrainians read during a full-scale war" – 2023″ by the Ukrainian Book Institute.
The research was conducted in August-September 2023, and more than 2,000 respondents took part in it, territorially representing all of Ukraine except for the temporarily occupied.
"Ukrainians began to read more. This is significantly more, and it should be taken into account now, building further state policy in the field of promotion of reading, support of reading, and support of book publishing," the director of the Ukrainian Book Institute, Oleksandra Koval, said.
So, according to the research, the share of those who use daily reading as a form of leisure in 2023 has increased to 17%; for comparison – in 2020, it was only 8%.
Language of reading. The reading rate in Ukrainian increased significantly: 54% of respondents said that they read in Ukrainian (22% more than in 2020). On the other hand, the rate of reading in Russian has significantly decreased and is now less than 10% (in 2020, this rate was 27%).
Who buys printed books, and what do Ukrainians read? Most often, representatives of the age group from 30 to 39 purchased printed books. Among the genres, respondents most often noted that they read modern novels, fiction, and books on psychology and self-development.
Reading and children. Although for children, reading as a pastime is significantly inferior to games and communication with friends, the share of Ukrainian children who read books has increased in all segments – daily, weekly, and monthly readers. A significant measure of children's reading can be seen in the declining proportion of children who do not read during their free time, dropping from 18% to 15%. It is noted that boys read less than girls; specifically, boys are more inclined to state that they never read, while girls are more prone to reading daily.
