Dimensions of Children's Motivations for Reading: An Initial Study. Reading Research Report No. 34.

A study examined the dimensions of children's motivation for reading. Eleven different dimensions of reading motivations were proposed, including intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for reading, perceptions of reading efficacy, social aspects of reading, and reading disincentives. An 82-item questionnaire was developed to measure each dimension, with several items assessing each dimension. The questionnaire was completed by 105 fourth- and fifth-grade children in southern Maryland. Factor analyses showed that some of the proposed dimensions were clearly defined, whereas others were not. Several of the dimensions were correlated with children's book reading frequency in a school-based reading program. The dimensions that appear to be the most reliable include Reading Efficacy, Reading Challenge, Curiosity, Aesthetic Enjoyment, Recognition, Social, and Competition. A revised version of the questionnaire based on the statistical analyses was developed. (Contains 48 references and five tables of data. The original version of the Motivations for Reading Questionnaire is attached.) (Author/RS)