It is common that reading is a relaxing activity! Most people, especially students would argue with this stance as they are surrounded by books, which are a requirement for their education, so it’s compelling rather than relaxing! In either case, books are a perk for all people as they serve a great purpose: shaping our character. 

The majority of people’s upbringing happened through books. Our favorite and worldwide request in order to hit the sack: fairytales. That is an undeniable proof that books are people’s company since their birth. Fairytale and children’s  book writers point  out their advantages  in forming youngsters’ character and rooting love for enriching their knowledge. It is notable that Eugenios Trivizas, a renowned Greek children’s writer has stated: ‘ If you want your children to be smart, read fairytales to them’. That is the advice of the lawyer, professor, as well as children book writer Trivizas  to  modern parents, detected in one of his numerous interviews. His saying could be considered legitimate, given his educational background and life experience as a children's book writer. Hence, books are an indispensable part of children’s life from preschool to college. 

Growing up, people engage in studying as the core of their education: being full time, hitting the books in this hustle and bustle of life. It is certain that most do not consider it relaxing. There is a distinction between reading and studying, although they are interconnected. Studying aims at gaining more knowledge and information whereas reading is mostly related to relaxation and pleasure. But these terms are wired as studying is also reading and the other way round. Generally, knowledge  determines  people’s identity  as it becomes part  of their personality. There are two similar poles needed to examine the purpose of exerting a stance in favor or against the imminent impact of books on people’s personality. The first concerns the triptych reading, personality, psychology. In like manner, the relation of students’ learning style combined with studying is leaving a mark in their personality. 

The phenomenon is that studying and books result in attributing certain characteristics to people concerning their personality, either positive or negative. These fixed adjectives have an effect on people’s and specifically students’ behavior  to the act of studying. So there are three words  as keywords  in the work of Hartley, in the article  ‘Developing personality through books’ : ‘personality’, ‘development’, and ‘literature’. Analyzing personality, the outcome is the social hailing that is given to students. It is a projection of the way society views students’ relationship with studying.  Moving to ‘ development’, it is connected  with psychology. Even the word itself states that it is a bio- psychological term. Development  is interrelated to both personality and literature! ‘ The  effect of literature itself as literature must not be overlooked in this matter of relief of emotional tensions. Response to the form as well as the content and context  can, if genuinely felt, bring such catharsis, in literature no less than in art or music. Besides these deep-lying emotional blocks to the development of a mature personality, distorted attitudes that do not check with prejudices, false assumptions, unsound associations, may impede. Last but not least, the social effects of reading, including this matter of the formation of attitudes, has been made by Waples and others in a book entitled ‘What Reading Does to People’. The authors point out that the effect of reading is apparently to a considerable degree determined by the predisposition of the reader, by his purpose in reading, and by the immediacy of his concern with the problem presented’. 

Books play a major role in the development of personality. Let’s untangle, the way reading motivation influences personality. Reading motivation holds two threads: intrinsic and extrinsic types of  motivation . ‘ It is known that reading motivation is "multifaceted." Being aware of at least some of the facets involved in developing intrinsic motivation in students can help educators come closer to the goal of instilling in all students a love of reading and learning. Pintrich and DeGroot's (1990) three categories of general motivation constructs were used to organize and present the facets of intrinsic motivation explored in this study: readers' beliefs, readers' reasons and purposes for participation and engagement, and readers' affective reactions.

 Students’ beliefs affect the way they consider thinking activity in the first place and how reading is presented. Generally ‘Beliefs may be formed by environmental factors or past learning experiences (McKenna, 1994), and students may not even be aware of their existence. While positive beliefs may foster learning, negative beliefs often block learning. However, if the educator is aware of these beliefs, then they can be used to help students learn. The beliefs that affected students' reading and motivation involved self-efficacy, attitude, and values.  Self-efficacy incorporates a student's beliefs either positive or negative. This difference is always crucial. Ιt concerns their capabilities to participate in the learning process. Also, the beliefs and the environment shape the attitude. ‘The Mathewson Model (Mathewson, 1994) of attitude influence upon reading is one example of a structure used to describe attitude development. The model represents three components of attitude: prevailing feelings about reading, action readiness for reading, and evaluative beliefs about reading. These components can be a causal factor during reading and can especially affect the intention to read. While students often arrive in our classrooms with attitudes firmly in place, it is our goal  of education to enhance positive attitudes and modify negative ones’. The development of students’ values is always multifaceted and marks their relationship with reading.

Furthermore, there are numerous purposes that impact children’s predisposition to read. Intrinsic motivation determines goals. In a classroom where studying is encouraged ,the goals are two to promote reading practice. ‘Schunk (1994) distinguished two types of goals used in the classroom; performance goals and learning goals. Performance goals specify a task to be completed or a product to be created. Learning goals refer to knowledge and strategies that need to be acquired, including feedback’. It is known that learning is about generating meaning. Hence, intrinsic motivation and reading are interconnected. Another significant  component is fueling their interest. Students’ interests are usually related to reading activity.

One more important factor is psychology. Affective reactions have a huge effect on the relationship between reading/studying and action. ‘Both types of interest can be found and nurtured in the classroom. Respecting students' interests can have a profound effect on their learning and motivation’. Feelings shape students’ perception and perspective about reading and studying. ‘Feelings and responses to participation in tasks. Affective reactions to reading events occur in response to readers' beliefs combined with the success or failure of their reasons and purposes for reading. Pintrich (1991) stated that researchers need to investigate whether there is an influence on reading motivation when beliefs about reading, reasons and purposes for reading, and affective reactions to reading are noted, honored and encouraged’. All these factors lead to shaping different personalities but it depends on the self- efficacy of learners to a great extent. The environment and encouragement play a significant role but the development of their inner world including the goals and the type of motivation seem to be the core that affect students impel to read  and study. According to research, students are affected positively toward reading when they have developed positive feelings for the procedure as well as external inspiration. So, when other reasons or experiences influence children in a negative way, the educator should take action to reverse these obstructions that make them hesitate to engage in reading and studying.

A balanced conclusion lies in the fact that both the environment[ including education, family and society] and the psycho-synthesis of children contribute to their reading habits. Generally, background knowledge demonstrates a neutral impact that books have on our personality at first, diving into the evidence that there is a positive side. Acquiring knowledge happens only through reading. Thus, it is vital that the first impression of reading is positive as feelings and experiences are the keys  to foster positive initial experiences with reading. This step can transform perceptions eventually making reading not just an academic necessity but a source of relaxation, growth, and personal fulfillment. 

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