Why are the wider benefits of reading so difficult to see? In this LecturaLab 2024 presentation, Jaka Gerčar examines how public narratives can transform individual behaviours into matters of collective concern. He compares reading with smoking and recreational running: activities whose social meaning changed dramatically once research, advocacy and public policy made their effects visible.
Reading becomes almost invisible because fluent readers process everyday texts automatically. Yet reading involves much more than decoding words. Gerčar draws on the Ljubljana Reading Manifesto to describe “higher-level reading,” which includes literary, long-form, slow and tenacious reading. These practices cultivate sustained attention, critical and analytical thinking, cognitive stamina, metacognition, imagination and a deeper understanding of other people.
These abilities are particularly important for democracy, which depends on informed and meaningful conversation. Higher-level reading helps citizens evaluate sources, identify bias, resist misinformation, engage with complex arguments and consider perspectives other than their own. It can also foster the practical wisdom required to make sound judgements in complicated situations and the imagination needed to envision alternative political and social futures.
Digital platforms increasingly reward fragmented attention, rapid consumption and simplified content, while educational assessments frequently emphasise basic literacy rather than deeper forms of engagement. Gerčar therefore calls for stronger advocacy and better ways of measuring reading’s broader effects. One proposed instrument is a Reading Health Index that could combine complex reading data into a clear public indicator, making reading’s often hidden contribution to personal well-being and democratic resilience more visible.
