3 April 2006

CUHK Study: Girls enjoy reading more and outscore boys in reading in 43 countries

Why do girls outscore boys in reading all around the world? Partially because girls enjoy reading more according to a recent study published in Scientific Studies of Reading. These results imply that parents and teachers who help students enjoy reading more will likely see their students’ reading skills improve.

Large-scale international study of gender and reading enjoyment

Professor Chiu Ming Ming from the Department of Educational Psychology of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and Professor Catherine McBride-Chang from the Department of Psychology of CUHK conducted one of the first large-scale international studies of how gender and reading enjoyment affect reading literacy. The study was based on the PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) data released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. This data included the reading test scores and questionnaire responses of 199,097 fifteen-year-olds in 43 countries and regions, including Hong Kong.

Nurture, not nature, explains girls’ higher scores

Girls outscored boys in reading both overall and at the threshold of literacy. In all countries and regions, girls outscored boys by 9% in reading on average. Moreover, adolescent boys were more likely to be illiterate (14%) as compared to adolescent girls (8%). Interestingly, Hong Kong had the 4th smallest gender gap, with only 4% illiterate boys and 1.4% illiterate girls. Many of the gender differences noted could be explained by environmental and social influences on literacy. On average, a 10% rise in …
• Schoolmates' family SES raises reading scores by 6%
• Reading enjoyment raises reading scores by 2%
• Country income raises reading scores by 2%
• Family socio-economic status (SES) raises reading scores by 1%
• Number of books at home raises reading scores by 1%

Notably, girls tended to report enjoying reading more than boys did. Linked to its small gender gap, Hong Kong students had the 3rd highest reading enjoyment rating. After accounting for the above factors, gender differences explained only about 1% of the differences in reading literacy. This 1% difference might be biological.

Recommendations for parents and teachers

These results suggest that adolescents whose families value reading (e.g., as evidenced by the number of books in the home) and who enjoy reading will tend to read better. These findings show the value of home literacy for adolescents, an under-studied group in this field. As reading for enjoyment is linked to reading competence, the researchers recommend allowing adolescents to select their own reading materials for enjoyment. Parents and teachers can buy, borrow, or facilitate reading of materials that interest adolescents, even if they are not adult “favorites” or “classics”. Thus, adolescents who are not motivated by traditional literature may enjoy other reading, such as comic books, magazines, or computer blogs, especially on Children’s Day.