Reading Motivation and Reading Engagement: Clarifying Commingled Conceptions

The constructs of motivation for reading and reading engagement have frequently become blurred and ambiguous in both research and discussions of practice. To address this commingling of constructs, the authors provide a concise review of the literature on motivation for reading and reading engagement and illustrate the blurring of those concepts in theoretical discussions and in measurement instruments. The authors then identify differences, clarify the constructs, and show how distinguishing reading motivation from engagement can deepen our understanding of their uniqueness and interplay. Implications for research and applications to instruction are explored.