Why Gen Z loves the library so much

A cellphone fixation could appear at odds with an attraction to books. However the latter might supply a much-needed reprieve from the previous.

In our recent study of American Gen Z and millennials, we found that 92% of them verify social media day by day; 25% of them verify a number of instances per hour.

But in that very same nationally consultant research, we additionally discovered that Gen Z and millennials are nonetheless visiting libraries at a wholesome clip, with 54% of Gen Zers and millennials trekking to their native library in 2022.

Our findings reinforce 2017 knowledge from the Pew Research Center, which confirmed that 53% of millennials had gone to their native library over the earlier 12 months. By comparability, that very same research discovered that 45% of Gen Xers and 43% of child boomers visited public libraries.

So, why may Gen Z and millennials, typically characterised as attention-addled homebodies, nonetheless see worth in journeys to the general public library?

A desire for print

We discovered that Gen Zers and millennials choose books in print over e-books and audiobooks, despite the fact that their different favourite studying codecs are decidedly digital, akin to online game chats and web novels. American Gen Zers and millennials learn a mean of two print books per 30 days—practically double the typical for e-books or audiobooks, based on our knowledge.

The desire for print additionally manifests itself within the varieties of books Gen Z and millennials are borrowing and shopping for: 59% stated they like the identical story in graphical or manga format than in textual content solely.

And whereas some graphic novels, comics and manga will be learn on a display screen, print is the place these intricately illustrated books really shine.

We have been most stunned by our discovering that 23% of Gen Zers and millennials who don’t establish as readers nonetheless visited a bodily library previously 12 months.

It’s a reminder that libraries don’t just serve as a repository for books. Patrons can file podcasts, make music, craft with pals, or play video video games. There are additionally quiet areas with free Wi-Fi, good for college students or individuals who work remotely.

Youthful generations are typically extra values-driven than older ones, and libraries’ ethos of sharing appears to resonate with Gen Zers and millennials—as does an area that’s free from the insipid creep of commercialism. On the library, there aren’t any advertisements and no charges, supplied you come back your books on time, and no cookies monitoring and promoting your conduct.

U.S. census knowledge additionally exhibits that younger generations are more racially diverse than older generations.

Our survey discovered that 64% of Black Gen Zers and millennials visited bodily libraries in 2022, a price that’s 10 share factors greater than the final inhabitants. In the meantime, Asian and Latino Gen Zers and millennials have been extra possible than the final inhabitants to say that searching library cabinets was a most popular strategy to uncover new books.

Printed books gained’t ping you or ghost you. And when younger individuals finally log again on to their gadgets, books make excellent props for #BookTok, the group on TikTok the place readers evaluate their favourite books.