Are Audio Books Harmful?

BookCritic101 · Wed Oct 19, 2011 12:47 pm

Audio books should be a fair supplement to (not a replacement of) print books. Kind of like digital vs. analog clocks: if we went strictly digital, we'd forget how to tell time.

tjamesmoss.author · Sun Oct 23, 2011 1:33 am


	Aqueda_Veronica wrote: Maybe it's not exactly the same thing, but I grew up listening to radio shows and dramas, loving them and I turned out just fine I would still read of course, but radio was something different, gave me a different kind of satisfaction. I actually feel sorry for the next generation that they'll be missing the thrill of staying late at night just to catch the next episode of their favorite series on the radio, with the lights turned off and volume way down not to wake anyone else in the house... Good times!

I agree. My son and I still listen to and love Prairie Home Companion and Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me, and Adventures in Odyssey is such an easy way to keep my attention and the attention of most children.

jamsebrown · Tue Jan 24, 2012 11:38 am

No The Audio book not a harmful but it is the good for those whos hobby to listen the music the book which are in audio that are in good lyrics then can remember what he can listen this type the music is very helpful to all of us .

philipkeller · Wed Feb 22, 2012 4:55 am

I think they're fine. Stories have been told orally from the beginning of time. Being able to read written text is very important in our day and age but I don't believe audio books are harmful.

Sue Salisbury · Wed Feb 22, 2012 7:56 pm

I love both. I read books when I have time and listen to audiobooks when I don't. It seems different skills are used when doing one or the other, but I believe audiobooks can improve listening and comprehension skills - and that seems a real plus. Also, most professional narrators are so good they add depth to the text. The emphasis their voices give also lets you know what they read into the words. So you learn to listen, you hear another person's perspective on the characters,and you get to do other work while you listen. That seems a win-win-win about audiobooks.

LevV · Fri Apr 06, 2012 1:03 pm

As a special edition teacher for many years, I can attest to the benefits as described above.

With regard to my own learning, I use the audio form in a couple of ways. These days I am using the format to improve my French. I download French podcasts and listen to them as I walk my dog.
I also use the audio format when I want to learn some content really well. A couple of times I have purchased a book in audio and hard copy. I read the book and then listen to it again - while walking the dog, of course.

bookstasted · Wed Apr 11, 2012 1:15 pm

My personal opinions: The reason that TV and movies are not as beneficial as reading is because there is no use of the mind to imagine what's happening - it's given to you audibly and visibly, so you are a passive viewer. When you read, your mind is translating the words into audio and visuals, so you are actively engaging with the work.

With audio books, you may not be translating words into audio, but you are still converting words into mental images. Therefore you are still actively engaging your mind.

My own problem with audio books is that they make me think of something, and my mind digresses. With a book, I stop reading while I think. With audio, I forget to pause and so I end up missing chunks of the material.

If you're interested in research on the subject, you might check out:

Beers, K. (1998). Listen while you read: Struggling readers and audiobooks. School Library Journal, 44(4), 30-35.

Casberque, R.M. and Harris, K. (1996). Listening and literacy: Audiobooks in the reading program. Reading Horizons, 37(1), 48-59.

Reitsma, P. (1988). Reading practice for beginners: Effects of guided reading, reading-while-listening, and independent reading with computer-based speech feedback. Reading Research Quarterly, 23(2), 219-235.

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