Yubero, S.; Sánchez, S. y Larrañaga, E. (2005). The act of reading and acquisition of values. A study of primary school children. L’edition pour la jeunesse entre heritage et culture de masse. Paris: Institute Charles Perrault. THE ACT OF READING AND ACQUISITION OF VALUES. A STUDY OF PRIMARY SCHOOL CHILDREN Santiago Yubero Jiménez Sandra Sánchez García Elisa Larrañaga Rubio CEPLI. Centre for the Study of the Promotion of Literacy and Children’s Literature. University of Castilla-La-Mancha, Spain The act of reading as a transmitter for social values We may think of the term ‘culture’ as a confusing concept, in which a multitude of definitions exist as a function of the different authors and the point of view we adopt. In general terms, we could understand culture as a collection of fragments of knowledge shared between groups of individuals with a common history and that are members of a similar social structure. Some authors such as Triandis (1994) define culture as a collection of elements, of an objective and subjective nature, made by human beings. These elements have increased the likelihood of survival in the past and have satisfied certain needs of people who share a common place in time and space. The objective aspects are those things carried out by humans with regard to tangible and observable elements, like for example, architectural structures, clothes or food. The subjective aspects refer to elements that are less tangible and difficult to observe directly. These can include beliefs, rules, roles or values shared by a community. It is precisely these subjective aspects of culture that determine the construction of a web of social relationships formed by people of different cultural groups as well as the lifestyles inherent in each community. Therefore, it will be those values and beliefs that in some way form part of our culture that play a relevant and important role in the psychological development of a person in the instant that they adopt a determined culture as their own. Values are basic beliefs through which we interpret the world that surrounds us and enable us to give significance to events including our own existence. Values are abstractions of what is important and desirable and are useful to judge and orientate our actions. To a great extent our values guide our attitudes and behaviour, helping us to develop favourable attitudes or rejection towards people, objects or situations. These values help us to understand reality and ready ourselves for it. Nevertheless, values are not something static and can evolve throughout the socialisation process of an individual, with new circumstances, information or conflicts