Powerpoint from Nicola Morgan's talk for the Scottish Council of Independent Schools - Librarians' conference Jan 13th 2016

1. Readaxation: the science of
reading
for wellbeing
Nicola Morgan
www.nicolamorgan.com

2. More information:
• My books
– About the teenage brain
– About teenage stress
• Classroom resources:
– Brain Sticks
• Your handouts
• My website: www.nicolamorgan.com
– And my blog
• Free Brain Sane newsletter re wellbeing, brains, mental health,
adolescence, teenage stress, science of reading, digital matters

3. Stress
A. What is it?
B. Why should schools care?
C. What’s so special about teenage stress?
D. What is the (evidence-based) role of reading?
E. How can librarians and schools influence it?

4. What is stress?

5. Chemicals
Adrenalin and cortisol
• Heart beats faster and we breathe faster
• Blood rushes to brain and muscles
– Away from skin
• Blood carries oxygen and glucose (energy)
• => SUPER-PERFORMANCE – stress is GOOD!

6. But stress becomes a problem if:
1. It becomes panic
2. Or cortisol builds up from lack of breaks
(Affects: sleep, mood, mental + physical health,
concentration, control,
performance and more)
Something else…

7. “Preoccupation”
• Brain “bandwidth”
• If part attention on one thing, cannot perform
100% on another
– Eg intrusive or negative thoughts; worries; self-
consciousness
– And “scarcity” – including of time and food
• Preoccupation diminishes performance/IQ:
1. Cognitive capacity (aspects of learning)
2. Executive control (aspects of behaviour)
Both The Organized Mind and Scarcity cover this

8. Special teenage stresses

9. Teenage stress
• Change: brains, bodies, chemistry, friends,
fears, expectations, pressures
• A regular schoolday
• “New” stresses:
1. Exams: higher pressure, frequency + stakes

10. Teenage stress cont’d
2. The internet and social media:
• 24/7 bullying  low empathy + lack of eye contact
• Highly appealing/addictive – time-suck
• Temptation to share personal info  risks
• Pressure to conform with tribe – “FOMO”
• Digital distraction –
– Multi-tasking myth – remember the bandwidth issue
– Attempt to multi-task  greater stress, more mistakes
See The Organized Mind

11. Teenage stress even more cont’d
• Biological differences
• “Scarcity” – of money, time, food
Scarcity by Mullainathan & Shafir
• Remember: all stresses lead to
“Preoccupation”

12. The role of reading
Reading Agency Literature Review 2015 – huge
meta-study
• Self-esteem; greater life satisfaction
• Increased vocab and general knowledge
• Increased empathy + self-understanding
• Better mood + relationships
• Reduced stress

13. Why might reading work so well?
• Readers believe it’s relaxing
• Allows engagement / flow
• Chance to forget worries – a CBT effect
• Bibliotherapy – a long history
• Clinical bibliotherapy
• Developmental bibliotherapy
– “Narrative transportation”  identification with
character  insight + growth

14. Readaxation
Definition: “Reading to relax, as a conscious strategy
for wellbeing and stress management. The aim is to
feel and function well.”

15. Does it matter what we read?
• Free choice
• No judgement
– Fiction or factual? A bee in my bonnet…
– Digital or print?
• Anything which allows engagement

16. How do we make it happen?
• Victor Nell (1988) The psychology of reading
for pleasure: Needs and gratifications. “Unless
people experience reading as a pleasurable
activity, they will stop reading and choose
more enjoyable alternatives.”

17. “Motivational Flowchart”
Wahhh! A
FLOWCHART!

18. 1. We need to expect benefit
Nell’s “Motivational Flowchart”:
If Adequate skills + Correct book selection +
Expectation of benefit …
 People will try reading for pleasure.
 If they find physiological + cognitive benefits,
 they will do more pleasure reading.
 If not, they will do other activity.

19. Use my Readaxation diary
• See website: Home  Brain/Wellbeing/Stress
 (righthand menu) “Resources about
Readaxation…”  first link is “Readaxation
Diary”
• Discuss possible benefits with students

20. Suggested benefits
• You feel less stressed
• You can switch off from worries
• Helps you get to sleep
• Helps you understand other people better
• Helps you face and understand problems
• Helps you help your friends with problems
• Helps you know more about the world – including facts
• Improves imagination/creativity
• Helps you succeed better at school
• Increases vocabulary
• Improves confidence and self-esteem

21. 2. We need to properly value it
• Remember: relaxation is not a luxury
– Too much stress  poor performance
• This pleasure has no negative and lots of
positive side-effects
• How can you get this message to senior
management?

22. 3. We need to make time for it

23. Let them take risks

24. Don’t fear teenage novels
• Increase self-knowledge at time of change
• Increase empathy when most needed
• Explore big questions when just ready
• Allow risk-taking and boundary-crossing
• Allow ‘engagement’ – contributing to
wellbeing and switching off anxiety
• BUT caution – role of school librarians

25. CAUTION:
Children who read a lot
risk becoming
independent, open-
minded, questioning,
knowledgeable and
CONFIDENT
WARNING!

26. In summary
• Relaxation is not a luxury but necessary for
health and wellbeing
• Readaxation is not the only way to relax but it
is a perfect one, with evidence
– AND it has many other benefits for performance
• TELL SENIOR MANAGEMENT!

27. www.nicolamorgan.com