Reading habits of Czech and Brazilian university students with and without dyslexia

Abstract

Purpose: to compare, with Adult Reading History Questionnaire results, the reading habits of adults with and without dyslexia of different cultures and languages. Methods: the research comprised 119 university students (60 Czechs and 59 Brazilians, half of them with dyslexia) assessed by responding to the self-report reading history questionnaire and taking a reading level test. ARHQ scores were compared between the groups and countries with the analysis of variance (ANOVA), and their correlation was assessed with the Spearman’s test, both with the significance level set at p < 0.05. Results: adults with dyslexia had lower reading habit scores and reading level scores than typical readers in both languages. Reading habits were positively correlated with reading levels in both languages. Regardless of the group, Brazilians had lower reading habit scores than Czechs. Conclusion: the results suggest that self-assessing reading habits is an effective way to screen for reading disorders. However, cultural and school factors must be considered.