'Read rage' over instruction books
Updated on 16 November 2008
"Read rage" is sweeping the UK - as consumers become fed up with the often incomprehensible language used in many of the instruction manuals produced by manufacturers.
The epidemic was revealed by research undertaken by the TechGuys - the UK's largest provider of home technology support and service - which is calling on manufacturers to pay more attention to the language they use in manuals.
The TechGuys survey of more than 1,500 consumers revealed that nearly 40% of the respondents became so irate that they yelled with frustration due to the over-complicated nature of instructions. And one in five even threw the offending manual across the room.
The findings revealed that women were more likely to succumb to "read rage" than men - growing so irritated by incomprehensible manuals that their behaviour becomes aggressive and irrational.
The study also showed that 62.8% of consumers opted not to use instruction manuals when setting up a new piece of technology.
The vast majority relied on trial and error or being shown by a friend or partner.
Fifty-six percent of Britons surveyed found technological instruction manuals impossible to understand - with twice as many women as men struggling with the instructions.
David Crystal, UK-based linguist and author of the Cambridge Encyclopaedia of Language and more recently Txtng: The Gr8 Db8, said: "The language used by major technology companies can be completely baffling even for the most technically gifted of us.
"Having studied samples of such manuals, it is clear that many possess common characteristics that make them hard for the average person in the UK - myself included - to comprehend."
He added: "This survey would appear to confirm my belief that the vast majority of people need the language of instructions within manuals revised by a third party to be able to install and/or maintain their new products easily and successfully."
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