Don't use contractions?

[geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA]

 Gina Caldanero wrote that she prefers to avoid contractions
 such as "don't" because the contracted (!) "not" is too
 important to let readers miss it. I lean fairly strongly in
 the opposite direction: when I'm tired or hurried, I often
 see the "do" and begin mentally acting on it before I see
 the "not" and stop.

 I imagine this is even more of a problem in bulleted lists
 for which each item takes the imperative voice. Something
 like saying "Do not:
 - eat
 - drink
 - or sleep."
 In such structures, it's easy to lose the "not" and simply
 read "eat, drink or sleep". It's even easier if you've seen
 bulleted list structures in (say) a manual, and know that
 each one provides a series of steps to follow. In that
 case, you're better to word the list items positively
 rather than relying on the "not".

 "Don't" can't be easily mistaken for "do", and is an easily
 understood contraction to anyone who is moderately familiar
 with English. Gina's specific example of misleading or
 confusing contractions (e.g., I'd = I had, would or could)
 is more an example of poor writing and editing than a
 condemnation of contractions in general; where such
 ambiguities exist, a good editor will reword to clarify the
 meaning. In my work with French to English translations
 (and vice versa, as editor of the French translations),
 contractions are never an issue to our translator because
 we edit the texts to be clear from the start.

 I'm aware of the general advice that we should avoid
 contractions, but to date, I've never seen any compelling
 studies that demonstrate this to be important advice. On
 the other hand, I've never done a literature search on the
 subject. Anyone out there have a good source, pro or con?

 --Geoff Hart     @8^{)}     geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
 Disclaimer: Speaking for myself, not FERIC.

                  TECHWR-L List Information
To send a message about technical communication to 2500+ list readers,
E-mail to TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU -dot-  Send administrative commands
         ALL other questions or problems concerning the list
       should go to the listowner, Eric Ray, at ejray -at- ionet -dot- net -dot-