{"id":201956,"date":"2025-03-12T14:53:30","date_gmt":"2025-03-12T18:53:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?post_type=short-read&p=201956"},"modified":"2026-03-04T13:14:40","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T18:14:40","slug":"almost-half-of-americans-say-people-have-gotten-ruder-since-the-covid-19-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2025\/03\/12\/almost-half-of-americans-say-people-have-gotten-ruder-since-the-covid-19-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Almost half of Americans say people have gotten ruder since the COVID-19 pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Five years after the coronavirus outbreak<\/a>, many Americans say public behavior in the United States has changed for the worse, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Nearly half of U.S. adults (47%) say the way people behave in public these days is ruder than before the COVID-19 pandemic. That includes 20% who say behavior today is a lot<\/em> ruder. Another 44% of adults say public behavior is about the same, while only 9% say people are behaving a lot or a little more politely in public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A sizable share of Americans also say they regularly see rude behavior in their daily lives, according to the survey of U.S. adults, conducted Nov. 12-17, 2024. About a third of adults (34%) say they almost always <\/em>or often<\/em> see people behaving rudely when they go out in public these days, while another 46% see this sometimes<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How we did this<\/summary>\n

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to understand Americans\u2019 views on public behaviors and changing social norms. It is based on a survey conducted Nov. 12-17, 2024, among 9,609 U.S. adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everyone who took part in the survey is a member of the Center\u2019s American Trends Panel (ATP), a group of people recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses who have agreed to take surveys regularly. This kind of recruitment gives nearly all U.S. adults a chance of selection. Interviews were conducted either online or by telephone with a live interviewer. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other factors. Read more about the ATP\u2019s methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the\u00a0questions used for this analysis<\/a>, the\u00a0topline<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0survey methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

Related: <\/em><\/strong>Many Americans perceive a rise in dangerous driving<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which kinds of behavior do Americans find unacceptable in public?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The concept of \u201crudeness\u201d can involve many kinds of behavior<\/a>. So, as part of our survey, we explored a variety of behaviors involving social etiquette in public spaces. These behaviors range from using technology around other people to displaying profanity, and they are just a few examples of what Americans might experience in public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of the eight actions included in our survey, two in particular draw the widest disapproval: 77% of adults say it\u2019s rarely<\/em> or never<\/em> acceptable to smoke around other people, and 74% say the same about taking a photo or video of someone without asking for their permission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around two-thirds of adults or more say that it\u2019s rarely or never acceptable to bring a child into a place that\u2019s typically for adults, such as a bar or upscale restaurant (69%); to visibly display swear words, such as on a T-shirt or sign (66%); or to curse out loud in public (65%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smaller majorities say it\u2019s rarely or never acceptable to play music out loud (59%) or wear headphones or earbuds while talking to someone, such as a shopkeeper, in person (57%). On both questions, sizable shares say it depends: 32% say it\u2019s sometimes acceptable to play music out loud, and 26% say this about wearing headphones while talking to someone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of the behaviors we asked about, Americans\u2019 opinions are most divided on whether it\u2019s acceptable to bring a pet into an indoor space such as a grocery store or shop. Fewer than half say that this is rarely or never acceptable (45%). Four-in-ten say that it\u2019s sometimes acceptable to do this, and 14% say that it is usually or always acceptable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Related: <\/em><\/strong>About half of U.S. pet owners say their pets are as much a part of their family as a human member<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Demographic differences in views of which behaviors are unacceptable in public<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Even though there is broad agreement that certain behaviors are rarely or never acceptable, there are some demographic differences in views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Age gaps exist on every question, with older adults more likely than younger adults to see each behavior as unacceptable. For example, 89% of adults 65 and older say it is rarely or never acceptable to curse out loud in public, but only 38% of adults under 30 say the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a similar gap on the acceptability of visibly displaying swear words, such as on a T-shirt or sign. Adults 65 and older are about twice as likely as those under 30 to say this is rarely or never acceptable (86% vs. 42%). Americans in the oldest age group are also far more likely than the youngest adults to say it\u2019s unacceptable to wear headphones or earbuds while talking to someone in person (76% vs. 36%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attitudes about some behaviors also vary by other demographic characteristics:<\/p>\n\n\n\n