Grammatical Pedantry Syndrome

[whitebeam]

Quote

It used to be we thought that people who went around correcting other people's grammar were just plain annoying. Now there's evidence they are actually ill, suffering from a type of obsessive-compulsive disorder/oppositional defiant disorder (OCD/ODD). Researchers are calling it Grammatical Pedantry Syndrome, or GPS.24 Jun 2012

What a load of rubbish..........it's the same as having tidy drawers or all your DVDs in order.........

 

If it doesn't cause significant distress and/or take up an hour each day being anxious about or be correcting grammar - it's not OCD

[Orwell1984]

It might be an autistic thing though. It causes frustration, anger and disgust sometimes. I have no idea what it could be but it causes a 'jarring' feeling that I feel an intense urge to put right or get out of the situation. I don't have it to a great extent and I know it seems awfully judgemental but the resultant feelings are real. The label put on it is probably just for big pharma marketing purposes. ???

Edited May 7, 2018 by Orwell1984

[snowbear]

I'm getting increasingly irritated by all the new 'disorders' being diagnosed these days. The problem with labelling specific behaviours as a disorder is people use it as an excuse to continue thinking and behaving the same way. So instead of leaving the therapist's office thinking, 'I need to work on this, this and this behaviour...' they come away thinking 'I've got autism, ODD, OCD, ADHD, BPD and that's why I am they way I am. Maybe I don't want to change because then I wouldn't be 'me'... 

I don't think it's helping people to be given all these disorder labels. Calling a preference for correct grammar a 'syndrome' is bonkers. I wonder what name they'll invent for my opposition to calling things disorders and syndromes in an attempt to beef up psychologists' egos?

ADS (Anti-disorder syndrome)  OR LAD (Labelling adversity disorder) perhaps...  

 

 

[taurean]

Well I don't go as far as Snowbear - but I do think calling an intolerance to erroneous grammar a syndrome all of its own doesn't seem necessary. 

Snowbear's definition of OCD is fine, and anything less than that is probably something a person could work on if they wanted to. 

My mother was a stickler for cleanliness and tidiness - and would seem to grab the plate away from you once you had finished eating, and do the washing up immediately after a meal. 

It wasn't OCD,  there was no fear underpinning it or repetitive thinking or distress - but probably under this new order of things it was "clear up-wash-up syndrome"  

 

Edited May 8, 2018 by taurean
Corrections

[Ashley]

Go on, I will bite... what is ODD?

[taurean]

I was wondering that too. 

[gingerbreadgirl]

yeah what the hell is oppositional defiant disorder?!

[gingerbreadgirl]

OK just googled it, actually it does seem to be a thing.

[Storm]

I was cringing watching the restaurant scene with Craig and Bethany. 

I have just started a new job, barely been there a month and have already heard 3 jokes about OCD. 

[Ashley]

17 minutes ago, Storm said:

I have just started a new job, barely been there a month and have already heard 3 jokes about OCD. 

Oh no, poor you   Were you able to say anything or did you not feel able to?

[Storm]

Wasn’t able to say anything, both people v confident and attitude and not been their long enough. Their comment was in relation to liking things lined up/being tidy 

maybe down the line if I heard these types of comments again I would speak up, although I wouldn’t relate it to me. Mainly because only a couple of people in my life know that I’ve been diagnosed with OCD, not even my parents and it’s a small world.

[Storm]

50 minutes ago, Storm said:

I was cringing watching the restaurant scene with Craig and Bethany. 

I have just started a new job, barely been there a month and have already heard 3 jokes about OCD. 

Just realised I commented on the wrong post 

[gingerbreadgirl]

I struggle with challenging confident people on this too Storm (or even non-confident people!) I worry that I'll come across as "the PC-brigade" or a kill-joy or whatever.  Which is strange because I am happy to challenge people on other things!

10 minutes ago, Storm said:

Their comment was in relation to liking things lined up/being tidy 

sigh!

[taurean]

29 minutes ago, Storm said:

Just realised I commented on the wrong post 

You just can't get the staff these days 

Seriously, don't worry, I myself have done it twice recently -it's very easy to do when you are following several threads

 

[Storm]

Thanks Roy, juggling many things at once. Just back from a physical tiring shift, the little one is hyper and refusing to go to bed and I need to prep for an interview tomorrow. At least I have some chocolate  

[Storm]

36 minutes ago, gingerbreadgirl said:

I struggle with challenging confident people on this too Storm (or even non-confident people!) I worry that I'll come across as "the PC-brigade" or a kill-joy or whatever.  Which is strange because I am happy to challenge people on other things!

sigh!

Yeah I understand completely, people don’t like to be corrected generally. Especially when they are trying to be funny and get some laughs. It annoyed me that everyone laughed along, the comment didn’t even make sense. It’s just a funny word to throw around. 

I was ignorant before I knew the true nature of the disorder, it’s probably what led me to go undiagnosed for so long. 

[snowbear]

On 08/05/2018 at 16:19, Ashley said:

Go on, I will bite... what is ODD?

It wasn't a hook, just a throw away abbreviation amongst many others to illustrate the point that these terms get bandied about way too often. 

It's always amused me that I was told I had Oppositional Defiant Disorder as well as OCD because my anger was greater than my anxiety and because I would fight authority figures tooth and nail. Load of nonsense (the diagnosis that is.)  I've defiantly fought authority figures all my life when I think they're wrong and stood equally firmly with the establishment when I think they're right. It's about defending my personal values and has got nothing to do with any psychiatric disorder. 

I could equally be said to have Grammatical Pedantry Syndrome. I mentally correct grammar whenever I hear errors, even in TV programmes. It's automatic. I just learned a long time ago not to say the correction out loud or to let it upset me beyond that momentary chalk-on-a-blackboard reaction. Seems as long as I don't irritate others with my reaction I can't be diagnosed as having GPS.

Thing is, I know I have an eccentric personality. You could pin numerous labels on it if you wanted, or you could just accept that I'm me. My personality was the same before I had OCD and will be just as eccentric when I'm free of OCD. (Probably more eccentric because there wouldn't be any OCD 'rules' to hold me in check!) 

Naming every behaviour under the sun that falls outside of society's norms as a syndrome or disorder says more about the society than the person with the 'diagnosis' (imho.)  

[Orwell1984]

I'm inclined to disagree with you Snowbear because for me, having the Aspergers diagnosis has made me not blame myself anymore. I was born like this so I'm not going to fight it, instead I have accepted it, my psychological foibles and eccentricities and will continue to learn about Aspergers. Having the Aspergers diagnosis has closed the doors on doubt re social stuff whereas in the past I'd ruminate forever on my interactions and scrutinise my behaviour to try and not appear unlikeably odd. I have given up the unwinnable fight. So having the diagnosis is such a relief for me.

 

I was thinking earlier today that maybe there is a greater number of individuals being diagnosed with all sorts of ASD related acronyms because researchers have more info to help identify the people who have learned to mask their symptoms to conform. I think there has always been a rather static number of sufferers but the diagnostic materials have been too sloppy to identify them up until now.

[taurean]

My wife thinks I have SOP. 

Slope off syndrome. 

But I am under treatment via short sharp shock therapy

Seriously, I think it is, as Orwell says, important for genuine disorders or syndromes to be correctly diagnosed and treated. 

My sister being treated many years ago on a Freudian basis, trying to blame her issues on her upbringing still bristles with us. 

The psychiatrist closed in on her having, apparently, a difficult relationship with our Mum - but she was really suffering from a form of OCD! 

 

Edited May 10, 2018 by taurean
amendment