The U.S. Marines are considering the abolishment of pronoun usage for ranking officers of the corps using the pronouns.
The use of pronouns “sir” and “ma’am” would be restricted in order to prevent gender misrepresentation that could “cause discord” among officers.
This consideration is following a recommendation report from the University of Pittsburgh, which cost about two million dollars and took two years to compile.
The study conducted by the University of Pittsburgh’s Warrior Human Performance Research Center at the behest of the U.S. Marine Corps recommended that “Instead of saying ‘ma’am’ or ‘sir,’ recruits in these Services refer to their drill instructors using their ranks or roles followed by their last names.”
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“Gendered identifiers prime recruits to think about or visually search for a drill instructor’s gender first, before their rank or role,” it added.
The study noted that the use of pronouns could offend superior officers when misgendered.
“Employing gender-neutral identifiers eliminates the possibility of misgendering drill instructors, which can unintentionally offend or cause discord,” the study said.
“By teaching recruits to use gender-neutral identifiers for their drill instructors, Services underscore the importance of respecting authoritative figures regardless of gender.”