32% Punekars have fought with their spouse over poor grammar

Sumit Singh

Pune : With grammatical elitism towering high amongst the youngsters, it’s all about grammatically holier than thou.

The compulsion of being grammatically correct can either be a result of projecting an image of superiority or a genuine concern to save the language. This behaviour is seen not only on social media platforms, but also in the daily life.

In order to validate this situation, Landmark conducted a survey to study the behaviour of ‘Grammar Snobs’ (grammar snobs are people who use their freakishly powerful understanding of grammar and spelling to attempt to “correct” others). ‘Are you a grammar snob?’ is a light-hearted concept that wishes to comprehend the drive behind this elitism.

The research enlists the traits of a grammar snob and what Punekars think about grammar snobbery. Here are some of the many interesting findings of the survey specific to Pune–

· While 15% respondents said they have broken up over bad grammar, 65% said love conquers all, even bad grammar

· 32% Punekars have fought with their spouse over poor grammar

· On being asked if they would unfollow people on social media for poor grammar, 48% said they will unfollow people for cringe worthy grammar while 52% said they couldn’t care less because grammar is dead on social media

· 45% respondents have expressed their views over bad grammar on social media

This survey was conducted in cities like Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi, Pune and Hyderabad. A total of 2,500 people of age group 18 to 25 participated, out of which there were 327 people from Pune. The survey talks about the usage of grammar at workplace, social media or other real life situations.

Age & Gender

 Out of the people polled, 60 % respondents falling between the age bracket of 18-25 said they were particular about grammatical errors

 Out of the respondents surveyed in Pune, 82% women claimed to be grammar snobs as compared to men

Workplace

 At workplace, 59 % will write directly to their boss in case of grammatical errors while 22% wouldn’t react and prefer being in their boss’ good books

 On the contrary, 78% will point out grammatical errors to their subordinates

Social Media

 On being asked if they would unfollow people on social media for poor grammar, 48% said they will unfollow people for cringe worthy grammar while 52% said they couldn’t care less because grammar is dead on social media

 45% respondents have expressed their views over bad grammar on social media

 20% respondents in Pune derived sadistic pleasure out of rectifying errors on social media

Love & Relationships

 While 15% respondents said they have broken up over bad grammar, 65% said love conquers all, even bad grammar

 32% Punekars have fought with their spouse over poor grammar

 51% respondents said they wouldn’t rectify errors on mother’s grocery list

Others

 41% Punekars agreed to always correcting people’s grammar while 54% said they will rectify depending on their mood

 30% Punekars said that if they see a sign with grammatical errors they will cringe about the error while only 16% will inform the owner about the error