About a stereotype that needs not exist

badducky · Apr 27, 2009

I think I've become hypersensitive to this one because I've been trying out the on-line dating scene...

There's this notion common to the interweb that misspelling=stupid.

This is a very bad stereotype to promulgate.

Quite a lot of very intelligent people are plagued with dyslexia, and have had a very full life being made to feel stupid for their inability to spell. The automatic assumption of poor spelling = stupid is deeply ingrained in web culture.

All caps, my friends. That's the one to look out for. Poor spelling isn't it.

Misspellings don't mean you're stupid. And, I hope we all can let this unfair stereotype go away.

Your pal,

Badducky

NeuroFizz · Apr 27, 2009

If it's any consolation, BadD, I don't have dyslexia and my spelling can be horrible. And my proofreading is worse sometimes. If what you say is true, I don't even know if my right hand would date me. Pretty sad because I'm way smarter than my right hand.

Very sad on a general level, too. But some people judge others by the kind of car they drive, the kind of clothes they hang on their bodies, and on various artificial things they have inserted, stained, or punched into their bodies. And this happens in person, not over the web.

Kitty Pryde · Apr 27, 2009

OK, misspelling /= stupid. BUT any number of completely free computer programs check your spelling for you and catch most mistakes (though not homonym mistakes). So I tend to think that it's more like 'can't be asked to use spellcheck'=stupid. If I knew my spelling was wretched, I'd check it obsessively.

Clair Dickson · Apr 27, 2009

I agree- especially since even if one knows how to spell the word, sometimes the quick format of the internet, combined with inadequate proofreading (esp. since our brains tend to read the right word!),mean that people make mistakes for things they do know how to spell.

I think the spelling thing is a way for certain people to feel superior-- likely they have nothing else they can feel 'good' about. I've made plenty of stupid spelling errors because my fingers write something wrong.

Though, I happen to think that the ideas expressed are more important than the way they are expressed. Now, I do think that people should try to learn spelling and grammar, but I do overlook occasional spelling and grammar errors. But I have no issues with needing to lord over people on the internet-- even those who act wholly foolish or boorish.

Sophia · Apr 27, 2009

Hang in there, badducky!

I get annoyed when people say, "If you just read a lot, you'd know when your spelling was incorrect", and generally imply that anyone who has difficulty spelling isn't a reader and hence is somehow willfully ignorant regarding their language. I have a pal who reads both fiction and non-fiction constantly, who seems to remember everything he reads, would make the perfect "phone a friend" choice, who has a PhD in astrophysics and who seems to know everything about world history, philosophy and the military and actively seeks to learn new things every day on any subject. But his spelling is appalling. It's NOT through stupidity or lack of reading, and I wouldn't judge someone online on their spelling.

I would say that on an online dating site, I'd expect a profile or whatever there is to be spellchecked. It would be like smartening yourself up for a good first impression at a job interview. But if you and another person then went on to online chatting, for example, and there were mistakes, I'd give you the benefit of the doubt. Spelling mistakes could be typos, or the brain going blank out of sheer nervousness.

badducky · Apr 27, 2009

Hey, my spelling is pretty good. There's lots of haters, though, who list in their profile that they avoid people with misspellings in profiles...

Crazy!

SPMiller · Apr 27, 2009

Written English is far from consistent. Our culture embraces this inconsistency rather than trying to correct it. Consider, for example, that we have spelling bees. Why? Because the way we spell some words is completely ridiculous, but people resist change and don't like the idea of spelling reform.

maestrowork · Apr 27, 2009

badducky said:
Hey, my spelling is pretty good. There's lots of haters, though, who list in their profile that they avoid people with misspellings in profiles...

Crazy!

You wouldn't be dating those people anyway. But I do think rejecting people based on misspelling is silly.

My spelling is usually okay but I do misuse or drop words (I'm guilty of dropping "not" -- which is bad because it completely changes the meaning of what I'm trying to say) especially when I'm tired, and I don't spell check every post.

It's not the misspelling that makes you stupid. It's the content of the posts, and trust me, there are a lot of stupid people online even if they have perfect spelling.

Deleted member 42 · Apr 27, 2009

badducky said:
Quite a lot of very intelligent people are plagued with dyslexia, and have had a very full life being made to feel stupid for their inability to spell. The automatic assumption of poor spelling = stupid is deeply ingrained in web culture.

Yeah, I can't spell at all. I fell in love with computers at an early age because WordStar on the mainframe had spellcheck, and guaranteed all my letters faced the right way.

badducky said:
All caps, my friends. That's the one to look out for. Poor spelling isn't it.

I'd suggest being wary of bright pink, and of an excessive use of screamers, like this !!! !

Deleted member 42 · Apr 27, 2009

Kitty Pryde said:
OK, misspelling /= stupid. BUT any number of completely free computer programs check your spelling for you and catch most mistakes (though not homonym mistakes). So I tend to think that it's more like 'can't be asked to use spellcheck'=stupid. If I knew my spelling was wretched, I'd check it obsessively.

Here's the thing though; if you're dyslexic, for a lot of people, spell check doesn't really help because:

1. The suggested words will be perceived differently than they are written; was may be read as saw.

2. If you are dysphonetic as well, you may not be able to distinguish three and there, and honestly, (see #1) three and there might both look the same.

Spellcheck does help some of us--me, for one, but not very many--I'm atypical in the extreme.

brokenfingers · Apr 27, 2009

badducky said:
I think I've become hypersensitive to this one because I've been trying out the on-line dating scene...

There's this notion common to the interweb that misspelling=stupid.

This is a very bad stereotype to promulgate.

Quite a lot of very intelligent people are plagued with dyslexia, and have had a very full life being made to feel stupid for their inability to spell. The automatic assumption of poor spelling = stupid is deeply ingrained in web culture.

All caps, my friends. That's the one to look out for. Poor spelling isn't it.

Misspellings don't mean you're stupid. And, I hope we all can let this unfair stereotype go away.

Your pal,

Badducky

I think, in this context, that a lot of people use it as a gatekeeper. The problem isn’t often seen here due to the nature of the forum and its particpants, but elsewhere, you’ll see a lot of posts and messages that are barely comprehensible. A mixture of textspeak, laziness and lack of knowledge of the English language.

Often such shoddy communication can denote a person who’s either immature, lazy or, yes, downright stupid. And those are all qualities that a person wouldn’t want in a potential partner. And often the content of their messages will prove this assertion. The craziest rants from the looniest people are often filled with typos etc.

So often, to make things easier for themselves, people will set up the misspelling test as a sort of standard for admittance past the first gate. But in truth, they’ll usually make their decision based on the content of your message.

TrickyFiction · Apr 27, 2009

Who here had the "Bad spellers UNTIE!" signature? That one always made me chuckle.

Medievalist said:
I'd suggest being wary of bright pink, and of an excessive use of screamers, like this !!! !

Those!!!!!! And these too?????? It doesn't mean people are stupid, but it sure makes 'em look that way!!!!!!!!! The majority of emails I get from my friends and family look like this!!!!! You know????????? It drives me crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111

It also makes me think any message I send with normal punctuation will appear unfriendly and unenthusiastic to those who are used to seeing rows of EXCITING!!!!!!! punctuation in their messages. But I can't bear to abuse the poor lil' things. Plus, it makes me hoarse just thinking about the amount of screaming it would take to read something like that aloud. I'm convinced this is the result of people watching too many used car dealership commercials.

nevada · Apr 27, 2009

U IS ALL HAITERZZZ !!!!!!!!!!

NeuroFizz · Apr 27, 2009

I'd guess the greatest danger with web-based dating services would be people who are somewhat flexible with the truth. Too bad the posting programs don't have a BS checker.

Phaeal · Apr 27, 2009

Misspelling hurts my eyes, but I don't assume a misspeller is stupid. My tolerance for misspelling varies according to the nature of the document in which it occurs. If it appears in a chat session or some other impromptu setting, I don't worry about it. If it appears in a profile meant to win a job or mate, then I wonder how serious that writer is about getting the job or mate.

So it's the degree of formality that determines my response, I guess. The more formal the document (like an MS for submission or query package, anyone?), the fewer errors I'd want to see. If you can't spell or handle grammar or standard formats yourself, get someone more adept to check that sucker over before you send it out or put it up on your website/public profile, etc.

badducky · Apr 27, 2009

NeuroFizz said:
I'd guess the greatest danger with web-based dating services would be people who are somewhat flexible with the truth. Too bad the posting programs don't have a BS checker.

Oh, like that's not a problem in the non-online-dating world...

SPMiller · Apr 27, 2009

badducky said:
Oh, like that's not a problem in the non-online-dating world...

Some people have built-in lie detectors.

Sadly, I don't

virtue_summer · Apr 27, 2009

NeuroFizz said:
I'd guess the greatest danger with web-based dating services would be people who are somewhat flexible with the truth. Too bad the posting programs don't have a BS checker.

It's just as easy to lie about stuff offline (well, with the exception of lying about appearance).

Anyway, when it comes to the original topic I don't think misspellings=stupid. What I do think is that if it's a semi important document and you knew you were bad at spelling other than using spellchecker you could easily hand it off to a friend to read over. Here's the thing about internet dating profiles: there's not a lot to go on. This means that everything counts. A profile riddled in misspellings doesn't say stupid to me. It says lazy. It says the person is not taking it seriously. Compare this to a job application. If you know that you have a horrible time with spelling and yet you have to fill out a job application, do you rail against this because you're going to be judged partly on something that's not your strong suit? Or do you try to do what you can to present yourself in the best way possible?

maestrowork · Apr 27, 2009

badducky said:
Oh, like that's not a problem in the non-online-dating world...

Just stay away from Craigslist, okay, Matt?

Manix · Apr 27, 2009

badducky said:
Hey, my spelling is pretty good. There's lots of haters, though, who list in their profile that they avoid people with misspellings in profiles...

Crazy!

If they are really that anal, would you want to date them? That would be my question.

mister_lister · Apr 27, 2009

hte lard tuld mi eye hav xcelnt speling.

badducky · Apr 27, 2009

Seriously, it isn't just in on-line dating. I'm just noticing it more because I'm seeing it so often in profiles.

Look around the interweb, and you'll notice a common arrow to fling around when one wants to dismiss another's merit is the spell-check arrow.

SPMiller · Apr 27, 2009

Did you misspell something on your dating profile, ducky?

Juuuuuuuust kidding. Pointing out spelling errors is certainly ad hom, but that doesn't stop it from being a very popular tactic in online "debates".

ChaosTitan · Apr 27, 2009

People accidentally misspell things all the time. I won't hang someone for it, or judge them out of hand.

Lack of caps and punctuation, though? That's another story.

unicornjam · Apr 27, 2009

I don't believe the occasional misspellings are the mark of a fool. But you do have to remember that the written word is the only way we communicate on many websites. I'm fairly relaxed (in the sense that I won't act as Teacher), but I'm not going to fault someone for being turned off by spelling errors; the correct answer is only a few clicks away.

About a stereotype that needs not exist

No Time For Chitchat, Kemosabe.

The grad students did it

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Deleted member 42

Walkin' That Road

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The grad students did it

Whatever I did, I didn't do it.

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