Cursing Out Loud. Pets in Stores. Which Public Behaviors Do You Find Rude?
About a third of Americans (34%) say they almost always or often see people behaving rudely when they’re out in public. Of course, what feels rude to one person might seem perfectly fine to someone else.
So which public behaviors cross the line for you?
We asked a nationally representative sample of 9,609 U.S. adults about eight situations they might encounter while out and about. Their answers varied, especially by age.
See how your views on certain public behaviors stack up against others your age – and people in different age groups.
Bad words, spoken and written
Choose your age group to continue
18-29
30-49
50-64
65+
Prefer not to say
Question 1 of 8
Do you think visibly displaying swear words (such as on a T-shirt or sign) in public is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
Question 2 of 8
Do you think cursing out loud is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
While Americans differ by age over the acceptability of cursing out loud, attitudes don’t vary much by gender, income level or educational attainment.
Music, in your ears or out in the world
Question 3 of 8
Do you think wearing headphones or earbuds while talking to someone in person (for example, a shopkeeper) is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
Question 4 of 8
Do you think playing music out loud in public is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
Americans’ attitudes about playing music out loud differ somewhat by education in addition to age. Adults without a four-year college degree (11%) are about twice as likely as college grads (5%) to say it’s always or usually acceptable to play music out loud in public.
Kids, pets and where (not) to bring them
Question 5 of 8
Do you think bringing a child into a place that’s typically for adults (for example, a bar or upscale restaurant) is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
Question 6 of 8
Do you think bringing a pet into an indoor space (like a grocery store or shop) is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
Some differences emerge by age and gender when it comes to views of taking a pet shopping. About a quarter of men under 30 (23%) say it’s always or usually acceptable to do so, versus 16% of women under 30. In fact, this is the only age group where men are more accepting of this behavior than women.
Smoking and taking pictures
Question 7 of 8
Do you think smoking around other people in public is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
Question 8 of 8
Do you think taking a photo or video of someone in public without asking for permission is …
Always acceptable
Usually acceptable
Sometimes acceptable
Rarely acceptable
Never acceptable
% of who say this is ____ acceptable
The smaller dials below show the distribution of responses among people in other age groups.
ALL AGE GROUPS
“Keep your smoke – and your camera – out of my face!” The two behaviors most commonly seen as unacceptable are smoking around other people and photographing or videoing someone without their permission. In both cases, around three-quarters of U.S. adults say the behaviors are rarely or never acceptable in public.
Check out the results window below for a summary of your responses, and to see how your views compare with other Americans. Click the “share” button to get your friends’ take on these scenarios.
How you compare with others
% of who say this is ___ acceptable
Visibly displaying swear words
Cursing in public
Wearing headphones or earbuds while talking to someone
Playing music out loud
Bringing a child into a place typically for adults
Bringing a pet into an indoor space
Smoking around other people
Taking a photo or video of someone without asking
To learn more about Americans’ views of behavior in public, read our blog post.
Illustrations by Pew Research Center and CSA Images via Getty
Acknowledgments
Editorial
John Gramlich, Associate Director
Drew DeSilver, Senior Writer
Anna Jackson, Editorial Specialist
Rebecca Leppert, Editorial Specialist
Mia Hennen, Editorial Assistant
Communications and web publishing
Kelly Browning, User Experience Manager
Shannon Greenwood, Digital Production Manager
Chris Baronavski, Lead Engineer
Alissa Scheller, Senior Information Graphics Designer
Beshay Sakla, Associate Digital Producer
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