111 - Describing the Shared Reading User Experience (UX)

Poster Number: 111
Publication Number: 111.410

Danielle C. Erkoboni, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, Blue Bell, PA, United States; Danielle Sands, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, Oreland, PA, United States; Emily Gregory, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, United States

Background: The user experience (UX) – how a user interacts with and experiences a product – is used to guide the development of technologies for users of all ages. An optimized UX yields a more engaged user, a concept long used to keep children scrolling on digital media platforms. This study seeks to understand and enhance the UX for a more analog pastime: shared book reading.

Objective: Establish survey items to assess the shared reading UX and assess book features associated with an optimized shared reading UX.

Design/Methods: This mixed methods study enrolled a convenience sample of caregivers of a child 0-5 years recruited via email from patient lists of 5 urban pediatric clinics. Caregivers participated in brief semi-structured interviews eliciting features of children’s books that enhance the UX – features that made a book a favorite or helped them read more often and longer. Interviews were coded using modified grounded theory; emergent themes informed development of survey items on perceived shared reading UX. A second sample of caregivers of children 0-5 years old were passively recruited through information inserted in Reach Out and Read (ROR) books distributed at pediatric clinics in a large metropolitan area. Caregivers electronically completed a demographic survey and the shared reading UX survey items. Descriptive statistics were analyzed to assess caregiver’s perceived shared reading UX.

Results: 24 caregivers (38 +/- 4 years, 96% Female, 84% White) participated in qualitative interviews with themes summarized in Figure 1. Approximately 1500 books were distributed with recruitment information and 197 caregivers completed the surveys (29.8 +/-years, 92% Female, 43% Black, 14% Hispanic or Latino). Caregivers reported having a book that was a “favorite” made them read more often (97%) and over other activities they can do with their child (83%). Favorite books of the parent (30%) and child (78%) also factored in reading a book more than once. Frequently reported features of favorite books included being “fun or easy to read” (57%), a favorite from childhood (27%), or helping their child learn (37%), with “books that foster pride” being selected least frequently (10%) (Figure 2).Conclusion(s): Access to books with “favorite” features can enhance caregiver’s shared reading UX. As efforts are made to invest in books that are increasingly representative, understanding book features that impact the shared reading UX can optimize interventions to support shared reading and inform books provided though early literacy programs, such as ROR.
FIGURE ONE: Qualitative Emergent ThemesWhat books features make a books a favorite, make you read more often or longer?
FIGURE TWO: Sample survey item responsesParticipants selected book features that made a book a favorite. Based on qualitative themes, these responses were in five general categories (select all that apply) and additional refining features were asked of those that selected selected several categories (also select all that apply).