Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students

This study examines how personal reading preferences, abilities, and cultural influences shape the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students in a Nigerian tertiary institution. Using a descriptive survey design, data was collected from 310 students through questionnaires. Findings reve...

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Main Authors: Williams E. Nwagwu, Francisca Uloaku Maxwell
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Academy of Cognitive and Natural Sciences 2025-06-01
Series:Освітній вимір
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Online Access:https://acnsci.org/journal/index.php/ed/article/view/852
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author Williams E. Nwagwu
Francisca Uloaku Maxwell
author_facet Williams E. Nwagwu
Francisca Uloaku Maxwell
author_sort Williams E. Nwagwu
collection DOAJ
description This study examines how personal reading preferences, abilities, and cultural influences shape the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students in a Nigerian tertiary institution. Using a descriptive survey design, data was collected from 310 students through questionnaires. Findings reveal that personal preferences strongly influence reading format choices, with 50.3\% of respondents agreeing and 24.9\% strongly agreeing (mean = 3.85, SD = 0.99). In contrast, peer and societal pressures have a weaker influence (mean = 2.37 and 2.42, respectively). Students exhibit high proficiency in using both digital (mean = 3.86, SD = 0.90) and physical reading materials (mean = 3.91, SD = 0.88), but they face greater challenges with digital platforms (mean = 2.58, SD = 1.16) compared to physical materials (mean = 2.31, SD = 1.07). Environmental factors significantly impact reading choices (mean = 3.27, SD = 1.05), while cultural influences elicit mixed responses (mean = 2.86, SD = 1.11). Religion emerges as a strong motivator for reading habits (mean = 3.77, SD = 1.06). Regression analysis establishes a significant association between individual factors and reading habits and well-being (R = 0.465, p = 0.000). Key predictors include personal preference (β = 0.069, p = 0.001), physical reading due to upbringing (β = 0.070, p = 0.000), and belief in the benefits of digital platforms (β = 0.070, p = 0.001). Based on these insights, the study recommends that universities and libraries develop bibliotherapy programs that prioritize personal preferences and provide diverse reading materials. Acknowledging the limitation of self-reported data, future research could incorporate objective measures such as digital reading logs to enhance accuracy and depth.
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spelling doaj-art-a498e2c933be4e789c05ae7fdc9b89602025-08-20T02:06:22ZdeuAcademy of Cognitive and Natural SciencesОсвітній вимір2708-46042708-46122025-06-011210.55056/ed.852Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate studentsWilliams E. Nwagwu0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5225-2934Francisca Uloaku Maxwell1University of IbadanUniversity of Ibadan This study examines how personal reading preferences, abilities, and cultural influences shape the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students in a Nigerian tertiary institution. Using a descriptive survey design, data was collected from 310 students through questionnaires. Findings reveal that personal preferences strongly influence reading format choices, with 50.3\% of respondents agreeing and 24.9\% strongly agreeing (mean = 3.85, SD = 0.99). In contrast, peer and societal pressures have a weaker influence (mean = 2.37 and 2.42, respectively). Students exhibit high proficiency in using both digital (mean = 3.86, SD = 0.90) and physical reading materials (mean = 3.91, SD = 0.88), but they face greater challenges with digital platforms (mean = 2.58, SD = 1.16) compared to physical materials (mean = 2.31, SD = 1.07). Environmental factors significantly impact reading choices (mean = 3.27, SD = 1.05), while cultural influences elicit mixed responses (mean = 2.86, SD = 1.11). Religion emerges as a strong motivator for reading habits (mean = 3.77, SD = 1.06). Regression analysis establishes a significant association between individual factors and reading habits and well-being (R = 0.465, p = 0.000). Key predictors include personal preference (β = 0.069, p = 0.001), physical reading due to upbringing (β = 0.070, p = 0.000), and belief in the benefits of digital platforms (β = 0.070, p = 0.001). Based on these insights, the study recommends that universities and libraries develop bibliotherapy programs that prioritize personal preferences and provide diverse reading materials. Acknowledging the limitation of self-reported data, future research could incorporate objective measures such as digital reading logs to enhance accuracy and depth. https://acnsci.org/journal/index.php/ed/article/view/852reading habits and well-beingreading preferencespostgraduate students in Nigeria
spellingShingle Williams E. Nwagwu
Francisca Uloaku Maxwell
Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students
Освітній вимір
reading habits and well-being
reading preferences
postgraduate students in Nigeria
title Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students
title_full Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students
title_fullStr Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students
title_full_unstemmed Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students
title_short Influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well-being of postgraduate students
title_sort influence of sociocultural factors on the reading habits and well being of postgraduate students
topic reading habits and well-being
reading preferences
postgraduate students in Nigeria
url https://acnsci.org/journal/index.php/ed/article/view/852
work_keys_str_mv AT williamsenwagwu influenceofsocioculturalfactorsonthereadinghabitsandwellbeingofpostgraduatestudents
AT franciscauloakumaxwell influenceofsocioculturalfactorsonthereadinghabitsandwellbeingofpostgraduatestudents