Study Reveals Younger Generations Use "Please" Less Frequently

Traditional markers of politeness, such as saying "please" and using formal pronouns, are becoming less common in everyday communication, according to recent research from the Free University of Berlin and the University of Bielefeld. However, researchers emphasize that younger speakers are not necessarily being rude; instead, they are adopting alternative linguistic strategies to convey courtesy.

Data gathered through online questionnaires as part of the international research project "Variant Pragmatics of German: Communicative Patterns in Comparison" revealed notable differences across age groups. Researchers analyzed how people formulate requests and discovered that 30-year-olds use the word "please" in only about a quarter of their requests, whereas 70-year-olds use it nearly twice as often.

Linguists note that younger generations rely on different linguistic devices to soften their requests. Words such as "perhaps" or "maybe" are frequently used to create a gentle and friendly tone. According to researchers, asking someone "Can you perhaps explain this to me?" can be entirely polite even without the traditional inclusion of "please" and "thank you."

The formal second-person pronoun is also experiencing a decline in usage among younger demographics. "Younger people use the informal address more frequently than older individuals," explained Janel Zoske, a linguist at the Free University of Berlin. She added that the choice of address depends not only on the speaker's age but also on the age of the person being addressed.

The study further highlighted regional differences in polite communication patterns across German-speaking areas. In Switzerland, addressing individuals by their given names is widespread, a practice that is much less common in Germany and Austria. Henrik Discher, another linguist associated with the research, noted that visitors from Germany sometimes perceive Swiss speakers as abrupt, though empirical evidence does not show that people in Germany speak more rudely than their neighbors.

Researchers pointed out that politeness can be expressed through numerous indirect means, such as using the subjunctive mood or cautious phrasing. A noticeable north-south divide was also observed, with a higher concentration of politeness markers frequently combined in the southern regions of the German-speaking area.

The evolving nature of everyday politeness is serving as a focal point for broader discussions on urban communication styles and cultural norms. As modern language continues to shift, experts suggest that society's understanding of courtesy is simply adapting to new forms of social interaction.