From: Felipe Contreras Date: Tue, 08 Jun 2021 08:11:32 GMT Subject: Re: [PATCH 4/4] CodingGuidelines: recommend singular they Message-ID: <60bf2634beff5_1a700820836@natae.notmuch> In-Reply-To: Jeff King wrote: > On Mon, Jun 07, 2021 at 04:57:48PM +0000, Derrick Stolee via GitGitGadget wrote: > > > If we use singular "they/them" pronouns instead of "he/him" or "she/her" > > pronouns, then we can avoid this congitive load on the reader. > > > > Using singular "they" is also incredibly efficient. Choosing a gendered > > pronoun is usually arbitrary between "he" or "she". Using constructs > > such as "he or she", "s/he", or "(s)he" are more complicated than > > singular "they". > > In general, I do like the efficiency and readability of singular "they". > As a native speaker, I have no problem reading it, and I have little > sense that most of my native-speaker acquaintances would, either. Does this sound correct to you? We thank the reviewer for their helpful comments > One thing that gives me some comfort is your research here: You should look into a carefully crafted usage note written by a panel of linguists and writers. https://ahdictionary.tumblr.com/post/147597257733/updated-usage-note-they Not a blog post written by a psychologist for an association actively criticized by many scolars (Twelve Scholars Respond to the APA’s Guidance for Treating Men and Boys). https://quillette.com/2019/02/04/psychologists-respond-to-the-apas-guidance-for-treating-men-and-boys/ -- Felipe Contreras