Twenty-six women and 26 men enrolled in a humanities course at Michigan Technological University wrote their initial impressions to short stories by James Joyce, James Baldwin, Doris Lessing, and Virginia Woolf. The names were removed and the journal entries were analyzed in light of these four questions: (1) Do women refer to their personal…

Analyzes the content of extension bulletins directed to farmers' wives and of their responses to it. Finds that the women generally accepted the recommendations of the "Cornell Reading-Course for Farmers' Wives" (offering an ideal vision of literacy tempered to suit women's life on farms) but valued reading mainly as a diversion from work. (RS)

A group of 562 sixth grade students and 559 twelfth grade students was surveyed to determine if there was a difference in reading attitudes between male and female students overall and between the sixth and twelfth grade levels for each sex. Although the majority of students disagreed with the statement that reading is for learning but not for…

The scores of fifth- and sixth-grade students on the "Survey of Reading Attitudes" revealed significant gender differences. (FL)

Questionnaires based on those developed by Albert J. Mazurkiewicz for his 1960 study were used in a survey to determine the attitudes of fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, and male and female teachers toward reading as a masculine or feminine activity and to determine if attitudes have changed since the earlier study. A total of 133 seventh…

Suggests that the sex and socioeconomic status of first grade students have little influence on their reading attitudes. (FL)

Three aspects of sex differences in reading achievement were investigated, based on data from school records and test results for first through fourth grade students in two parochial schools. The three aspects that were studied included (1) the relationship between sex-typed perceptions of reading and reading achievement, (2) changes in students'…

A study was conducted to explore the reading habits, interests, and attitudes of older readers. One hundred and twenty readers aged 60 to 64 years participated in the Adult Inventory of Reading Interests and Attitudes (AIRIA) and were classified as minimal, moderate, and avid book readers. Fifty-five of these subjects were then interviewed. Among…

A study was conducted to discover if the stated reading attitudes and interests of sixth grade students were relevant to their self-selected reading materials. Fifty students completed questionnaires concerning their reading attitudes and interests and used log sheets to record information about their self-selected reading materials. The results…

Describes a study of mothers' observations of fourth-grade boys' reading habits. The results indicated that the boys' reading did not really decrease as they grew older, but rather, that their interests were expanding into what is considered a "male literacy," which begins to include less and less sharing of reading experiences with their mothers.…

Analyzes the roles played by females in Judy Blume's "Are You There God? It's Me Margaret." Concludes that the book offers flat and unflattering portrayals of female characters. (FL)

This monograph contains a discussion of a telephone survey conducted to gain more knowledge about the job-related reading, functional reading, and leisure reading habits of a representative sample of adults from Anderson, Indiana. The discussion highlights survey results by demographic variables, reports specific analyses of survey items, and…

Investigating the reading habits of adults in Egypt, East Africa, a study examined 294 Egyptians (233 males and 61 females) in post-secondary education in Cairo, and in the industrial cities of Shopra El-Khema, and Impapa, El-Giza. Marital status, sex, and occupation were used to group the subjects. Subjects completed a 29-item questionnaire…

Describes observations of two British primary school classrooms and how teaching conditions set up or preclude gender specific reading attitudes. (HTH)