Young literary reading: book clubs as research settings

Abstract

This article focuses on the use of book clubs in studies with young readers (aged 13 to 18 years old), using the model applied by the Germán Ruipérez Foundation with its project BeattlePad (Territorio Ebook). This study aims at substantiating the influence that book clubs have in the reading habits of this age group, as well as following up on these habits in their natural environment. It is presented as a study that has followed a qualitative methodology using semi-structured interviews and analyzing the results of the study. It is based on the hypothesis that book clubs have a meaningful role from the point of view of motivating the reader, but also as an object of study to detect all the central elements that are rooted in the development of reading habits. The study of these entities allows segmenting elements that are usually difficult to pinpoint.