Does Reading Increase IQ in Adults? 9 Benefits of Reading

The scientific community has thoroughly researched and documented the significant role of reading in strengthening vocabulary, knowledge, and focus. But while it certainly boosts our understanding of the world, does reading increase IQ as well?

To answer this question, as well as how effective reading is in stimulating the brain and improving overall cognition, we gathered our experts and set out on a journey through research studies and scientific literature.

Read on to learn how reading affects neurons and what kinds of books are particularly helpful in boosting our mental faculties.

So, let’s dive in.

Does Reading Increase IQ?

Reading develops your innate intellectual potential, which, in other words, essentially means that reading increases IQ primarily by developing new neural pathways in your brain and introducing you to perspectives you haven’t considered before.

Although it’s unclear how many IQ points you might be able to gain by reading regularly, what reading does to the brain is well known. Not only does it engage your cognitive faculties and improve your crystallized intelligence, but it also protects your brain from aging and developing Alzheimer’s.

In addition, reading promotes good sleep and relaxation, both of which are crucial to your brain’s health and growth.

Finally, reading boosts your crystallized and fluid intelligence, two crucial aspects of general intelligence that strongly impact your IQ score and determine how you process and store information.

Let’s delve a bit deeper into these two types of intellect.

Different Types of Intelligence

The intelligence quotient (IQ) measures general intelligence, otherwise known as the “g factor,” which consists of two subtypes: fluid intelligence and crystallized intelligence.

Fluid intelligence is the ability to reason, solve problems, process information, and use cognitive faculties in the present moment.

On the other hand, crystallized intelligence is the knowledge accumulated and stored over the years that can be called upon to help us assess and understand a new situation.

Aside from general intelligence and its subtypes, we can identify nine more types introduced and popularized by Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. Among them, the one that benefits the most from reading is verbal-linguistic intelligence.

How Does Reading Increase IQ? 9 Scientific Benefits of Reading

It’s clear that reading can increase IQ (score) by fueling cognition and improving both fluid and crystallized intelligence.

But in which ways specifically does reading increase IQ? And how does that manifest in your daily life?

Let’s explore some of the scientifically proven benefits of reading in a bit more detail.

#1. Reading Expands Your Vocabulary

Let’s start with the obvious—the more you read, the richer your vocabulary will be. This is no secret, nor is it too surprising. After all, reading is ultimately about interacting with the words you know and acquiring new ones naturally, using context clues instead of a dictionary.

The new vocabulary you acquire affects your thinking patterns, creating new connections and ideas in your brain. Ultimately, it’s not just thought that influences language—language also influences thought.

Interestingly, knowing multiple languages can further enhance cognitive processes, as explored in our article on the cognitive benefits of being bilingual.

#2. Reading Boosts Your Brain Power

Reading is one of the most stimulating activities to increase brain power, right up there with chess and playing instruments.

As you read, connectivity between different parts of your brain increases, with some evidence suggesting that the brain produces new neurons. Naturally, that strengthens your cognitive faculties, improves sensory processing, and enhances memory.

#3. Reading Opens You to New Ideas

Regular exposure to new information, fictional characters, and imaginary worlds can significantly change your views and attitudes. Usually, avid readers tend to be more open-minded, eagerly exploring novel ideas and accepting differences.

But you won’t just become more receptive to other people’s ideas—you’ll be more likely to develop some on your own. Reading encourages creativity and out-of-the-box thinking, improving your inventiveness and problem-solving skills.

#4. Reading Increases Your Empathy Levels

Research has shown that reading fiction isn’t just an enjoyable activity to help you pass the time; it can actually increase your emotional intelligence.

Fiction readers enjoy exploring new perspectives and mental states through the characters they encounter in novels. By vicariously experiencing their feelings, they learn how to empathize not only with fictional people but with real humans as well.

However, this doesn’t happen after reading only a book or two. You have to be a consistent and avid reader of fiction for your empathy to significantly increase.

#5. Reading Expands Your Knowledge

If nonfiction aligns more with your interests, we have good news. These books are the perfect source for expanding your knowledge and learning about the world.

Considering the sheer number of available non-fiction books, everyone can find something to enjoy.

For example, if you want to learn more about the universe, there’s Cosmos by Carl Sagan to feed your curiosity. On the other hand, if you’re interested in finance, read any of the thousands of books on investment, budgeting, or cryptocurrency.

#6. Reading Increases Your Creativity

If you were locked up in an empty room with no stimulation, your mind would soon run out of novel ideas. That’s because creativity doesn’t come out of nothing—it feeds on experiences, encounters, and information you absorb in your everyday life.

So, when you read a book, you essentially nourish your mind, giving it material to chew on and produce something entirely new. That’s why plenty of avid readers dream of becoming writers themselves; with their constant exposure to books, their minds are often brimming with ideas.

#7. Reading Improves Your Memory

Memory, a crucial aspect of IQ, significantly benefits from regular exposure to books. But how exactly does reading improve memory?

As you read, your brain has to recall words and their meanings automatically in order to make sense of the writing. You are, of course, completely unaware of this process, seemingly sailing through the book without thinking. But behind the scenes, your brain is working hard.

As a result of frequent exercise, your working memory becomes much more efficient, allowing you to recall information faster and memorize better. In turn, that boosts your score on an IQ test, where memory is a crucial aspect.

#8. Reading Reduces Stress

According to a 2009 study, reading reduces stress levels by up to 68 percent—more effectively than listening to music or taking a walk.

To an avid reader, that comes as no surprise. What could be more relaxing than diving into the world of a good book, far away from daily realities and struggles? As a form of escapism, hardly anything can compare to reading.

And with lower stress come improved cognitive thinking, decision-making, and judgment, all of which are crucial aspects of general intelligence.

#9. Reading Improves Focus

In the world of TikTok and Instagram Reels, attention spans keep decreasing, with younger generations even finding it hard to focus on a full-length film. Of course, that is a cause for concern—how can they be expected to study or perform well at their jobs if that continues?

Luckily, there is a very simple solution: reading books on a regular basis.

According to research, reading stimulates the prefrontal cortex, which is, among other things, responsible for concentration. Hence, just 30 minutes of reading a day can significantly boost your attention span and improve your resistance to distractions.

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What Kind of Reading Increases IQ?

Generally speaking, any reading is beneficial to your brain. No specific kind of reading makes you smarter, and you’re not required to read only classics and non-fiction.

However, some genres will have a greater impact on your cognitive thinking and crystallized intelligence than others. Usually, those are books that teach you about a specific topic or unexpectedly challenge your worldview.

For example, you could ponder over a philosophy book or explore the universe with a good book on cosmology. Alternatively, you could pick up a famous person’s biography or something from popular psychology to further expand your horizons.

In fact, if you need inspiration, we have an extensive list of books to help you boost your IQ.

How to Become an Avid Reader

Now that you’re aware of the relationship between reading and IQ, it’s time to get your hands on a few books and develop a new habit.

However, if you’ve never been an avid reader, that might not be easy to do. Reading takes time and focus, and you might feel that those things could be better spent elsewhere.

So, here are a few tips to help you embark on your reading journey:

• Start with a genre that suits you. As beneficial as memoirs or scientific journals might be, they won’t do much good if you’re not interested in them. Choose something that keeps your attention at first—later, you can move on to exploring other genres.
• Create book lists. A book list can keep you motivated to read, especially if you cross off an item every time you finish one of the books. If you’re not sure what to put on your list, think of the books you like and look up recommendations for similar ones.
• Try different formats. Paper books are a classic, but they may not suit everyone’s tastes. Instead, you can try reading e-books on your Kindle or listening to audiobooks. The format ultimately doesn’t matter.
• Read a little every day. You might have to push yourself a bit in the beginning, but reading every day is a surefire way to form a habit. There is no need to read hundreds of pages either—even fifteen minutes goes a long way.
• Don’t force yourself. If you don’t like a book, it’s perfectly okay to drop it. That doesn’t mean you’re failing at being an avid reader. On the contrary, avid readers are more than willing to stop reading a book if they feel they might enjoy a different one more.

Key Takeaways

So, does reading boost IQ? As you’ve seen, not only does reading help increase IQ, but it also expands your vocabulary, opens you up to new perspectives, and improves your memory and concentration. On top of that, it does wonders for your mood by reducing stress and helping you fall asleep.

Taking all this into account, it might be high time to grab a book right away. Your mind will surely appreciate it!