Does Reading Lead To Change?

My last post got me thinking about a question, and that is, "does reading actually lead to a person making a change?"  I think of it in terms of weight loss, but it could applied to any area.

I wonder if much of the diet books that are being purchased are being purchased by the same people.  In other words, people keep reading and reading, but never really take any action.

I almost think there is some type of evolutionary module involved here, because the publishing industry is so huge.  There might be some sort of evolutionary predisposition to consuming information, whether or not that information can ever be applied.  Now with the internet and blogs, there is an unlimited amount of material that can be read.  But is all this reading getting anyone to change?

If someone wants to lose weight, the best way to do it in my opinion is a Paleo diet of fruits, vegetables, and meat.  Now I just said this in one sentence or I could write a 300-page book about it, but the basic advice does not change.  And I'm starting to think that more reading not only does not help, but may in fact be detrimental.  It may shift people more towards contemplation than action - essentially "trapping" people in an endless cycle of information consumption.

Comments

[JBennet]

But the Paleo phenomenon is relatively new; as a mass phenomenon. Some people knew of it before but the knowledge was not out there. I have read many diet books going back 15 years. But it wasn't until I discovered Cordain and Devany that I was able to really change. So it is precisely because I kept reading that I was able to change.

I agree though that some people just read self-improvement books (nutritional or otherwise) and don't take action.

[Richard Nikoley]

Matt:

In the wider evolutionary context, we're talking about communication. Publishing is simply a more efficient, competitively driven mechanism to communicate.

We're certainly evolutionarily predisposed to gather information to aid us in survival, prosperity, and happiness; so, naturally, we're open to communication just as an H/G is going to gorge on a patch of blackberries he happens upon in the late fall.

I think what will drive societal evolution going forward is a smoking out of the most effective methods of organizing, using and profiting from all the information. If that's the case, it could just as well turn out that the most effective strategy is to ignore all the minute-by-minute and hour-by-hour communication, focus on the few things that really interest you and work them, and let the important events and changes reach you only if important enough to find a way through to you.

That's my strategy.

[Matt Metzgar]

I also have a stack of diet books that led to me finding Cordain's book. But since then, I've only bought a handful of nutrition books. So maybe it's a matter of just finding the information you need and then moving on.