Question 5 is a different format from the rest. It threw me off. Not sure if that's part of your study or not. Good luck on the dissertation!
this post was submitted on 15 Jul 2025
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I literally choose all my books sight unseen from library website or online shop websites based solely on recommendations or prior author experiences. The cover art plays zero role in my decision to buy.
Smells like a market reaserch, as there isn't any email to ask questions or the name of the student. In other studies that was always provided.
Still filled out the survey.
Just one note: I don't know what the nature of your thesis is, but you might get more nuanced results by something like assigning each book in a pair a 1-5 score. Right now, an answer of "I like #1 better than #2" could mean a few things:
- #2 is just awful and I hate it.
- Both are really good, but #1 is just slightly better.
- #1 just slaps and nothing could compare to it.
I found the question about which other genres I read very limiting. Only three responses allowed!
I’m not sure if I’m unusual, but left to my own devices I’d have picked at least five or six. As it is, I had to leave out some I really do regularly read (like ‘non-fiction’ and ‘literary fiction’).
It’s interesting, I usually have a list of books I want to read based off of history, word-of-mouth, awards, etc. So when I get to the bookstore the cover rarely plays a role. Good luck with your research!
Done - that was fun.
I've read a few of these and I know some of the authors' other works - I noted those in my comments.
Personally, I like to browse the used book store and collect books from favorite authors. (Clarke, Asimov, Niven, Campbell( A.K.A. Hemry), and especially Heinlein) I do often grab books based only on their covers, and those will usually be 1960s or 70s books with a crazy spacecraft or a goofy alien on the cover.
For anyone wondering, like I was: link is legit. No PII/login needed
I love great book covers and have great fondness for the covers of novels I love however I buy most books online and by reputation or review so rarely see a cover that arrests my attention.