It's not magic: Reading Harry Potter books can boost children's tolerance By Scientific American, adapted by Newsela staff on 06.17.16 Word Count 765 Erin Hutchinson (left) and Mary Beth Hutchinson, both of Mesa, Arizona, check out their copies of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by JK Rowling, the seventh and final Harry Potter book, at the Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, Arizona, July 21, 2007. Photo: AP/Ross D. Franklin Author JK Rowling's Harry Potter books are popular among both children and adults. However, they may be much more than just entertaining reading material. In fact, some researchers believe that reading Rowling s books can perhaps make us nicer people. The Harry Potter series is about a young orphan who discovers that he has magical powers. While learning to use magic, he faces many challenges common among children and teenagers. He also faces the less common challenge of fighting an evil wizard who wants to take over the magical world. With more than 450 million copies sold, the Harry Potter novels are some of the bestselling books of all time. Although not everyone is a fan of the series, research suggests that reading the Harry Potter books might be good for the world. For many years, researchers have studied the importance of contact between in-groups and out-groups. An in-group is a social group to which someone belongs. An out-group is a group that someone does not belong to or views as threatening. Contact between in-
groups and out-groups is important because it helps to prevent people from becoming prejudiced against those who are different from themselves. That contact does not need to happen in person. Reading about friendship between characters from different groups is enough to improve children's opinions of out-groups. A More Positive Attitude A new study published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology found that reading the Harry Potter books in particular can change children's opinions. In the books, Harry often interacts with people who are different from and mistreated by others. Muggles, people who have no magical ability, get no respect in the wizarding world. Wizards and witches descended from only one magical parent are not treated much better. Harry's enemy in the series, the evil wizard Lord Voldemort, believes that power should only be held by pureblood wizards. He harms and even kills many people who do not belong to his chosen group. The research group that published the study was led by professor Loris Vezzali of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia in Italy. The researchers first asked 34 elementary schoolchildren their opinions of immigrants, who are often disliked in Italy. The children were then divided into two groups that met once a week for six weeks. Both groups read passages from the Harry Potter books and talked about them with a research assistant. One group read passages about prejudice, such as a scene in which Draco Malfoy, a pure-blood wizard, insults Harry's friend Hermione because her parents are Muggles. The other group read passages that were not about prejudice. A week after the last session, the researchers asked the children about their opinions of immigrants for a second time. The researchers found that children who had read passages about prejudice had more positive opinions of immigrants than they had had before. The opinions of the children in the second group had not changed. More Tolerant Of Gays and Refugees Vezzali and the other researchers performed two more studies that had similar results. One found that reading Harry Potter improved Italian high school students' attitudes toward gay people. The other found that English university students who read the books had kinder opinions of refugees. The study supports earlier research that suggests that reading novels as a child can have a positive effect on a person's personality and social skills. One earlier study was published last year in the journal Science. The study found that reading fiction can help people to better understand and relate to others. Books with strong themes and characters can help readers think about points of view that they might otherwise not consider.
Vezzali said that fantasy books might be especially helpful in changing readers' opinions of others who are different from themselves. Books like the Harry Potter novels are about groups of people that do not exist in real life. It can be easier to think about different viewpoints when they are presented in a book that does not take place in the real world. A Better Understanding Of Different People Vezzali believes that the Harry Potter novels and similar books may help to teach children about understanding people who belong to different groups. His research group plans to continue studying how books can affect people's opinions of others. They hope to bring about real change in society through their research. When it comes to understanding and accepting others, humankind has a long way to go. But if Vezzali is right, reading the Harry Potter books might help to make the world a better place.
Quiz 1 How does paragraph 1 of the section A More Positive Attitude reflect a CENTRAL idea of the article? It lists some of the major themes in the "Harry Potter" books. It illustrates how "Harry Potter" books deal with the idea of prejudice. It explains why people identify so strongly with the Harry Potter character. It describes the Harry Potter character s attitudes toward different groups. 2 Which sentence from the article would be MOST important to include in a summary? The Harry Potter book series is about a young orphan who discovers that he has magical powers. For many years, researchers have studied the importance of contact between in-groups and out-groups. In the books, Harry often interacts with people who are different from and mistreated by others. The study supports earlier research that suggests that reading novels as a child can have a positive effect on a person's personality and social skills. 3 What is the MOST important reason why Loris Vezzali wants to study people who read Harry Potter books? to determine the real causes behind the popularity of fantasy novels like Harry Potter to demonstrate that fantasy novels have just as much value as more serious literature to argue that adults can benefit from books like Harry Potter just as much as children do to better establish the connection between reading literature and people s attitudes and social skills 4 With which of the following statements would Loris Mezzali MOST LIKELY agree? The Harry Potter books deal with a number of complex adult themes. The Harry Potter books are artistically superior to most fantasy novels. Fantasy novels such as the Harry Potter books can be powerful teaching tools. Fantasy novels tend to simplify things so readers can better understand them.
Answer Key 1 How does paragraph 1 of the section A More Positive Attitude reflect a CENTRAL idea of the article? It lists some of the major themes in the "Harry Potter" books. It illustrates how "Harry Potter" books deal with the idea of prejudice. It explains why people identify so strongly with the Harry Potter character. It describes the Harry Potter character s attitudes toward different groups. 2 Which sentence from the article would be MOST important to include in a summary? The Harry Potter book series is about a young orphan who discovers that he has magical powers. For many years, researchers have studied the importance of contact between in-groups and out-groups. In the books, Harry often interacts with people who are different from and mistreated by others. The study supports earlier research that suggests that reading novels as a child can have a positive effect on a person's personality and social skills. 3 What is the MOST important reason why Loris Vezzali wants to study people who read Harry Potter books? to determine the real causes behind the popularity of fantasy novels like Harry Potter to demonstrate that fantasy novels have just as much value as more serious literature to argue that adults can benefit from books like Harry Potter just as much as children do to better establish the connection between reading literature and people s attitudes and social skills 4 With which of the following statements would Loris Mezzali MOST LIKELY agree? The Harry Potter books deal with a number of complex adult themes. The Harry Potter books are artistically superior to most fantasy novels. Fantasy novels such as the Harry Potter books can be powerful teaching tools. Fantasy novels tend to simplify things so readers can better understand them.