If the world seems to you a little nastier and more confrontational than it was just a few years ago, you're not alone. Many Americans say the world is a ruder place than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic and the public health responses that closed too many businesses and schools, effectively confined some to their homes, and isolated large numbers of people. Unfortunately, both current evidence and history suggest we may be stuck with a coarser world for years to come.
Half of Americans Say People are Ruder Since COVID
"Nearly half of U.S. adults (47%) say the way people behave in public these days is ruder than before the COVID-19 pandemic," Pew Research reported last week. "That includes 20% who say behavior today is a lot ruder." A slightly lower number—44 percent—said that behavior is about the same, while 9 percent actually claim that "people are behaving a lot or a little more politely in public."
