Split-screen digital illustration: on the left, a calm blue chat window with a smiling robot and friendly user messages; on the right, a red chat window with a stressed robot and angry user messages, visualising how tone changes interactions with ChatGPT.

Does Being Rude to ChatGPT Actually Get Better Results?

TL;DR: A 2025 study suggests that being rude or curt to ChatGPT-4o can slightly improve accuracy (by ~4%) on multiple-choice questions. However, this is likely because rude prompts are shorter and more direct, not because the AI likes the attitude. You can get the same results by being concise without being mean. Metric Details Study Name Mind Your Tone (Dobariya & Kumar, 2025) Model Tested ChatGPT-4o Accuracy Gap Very Polite (80.8%) vs. Very Rude (84.8%) Main Driver Directness, brevity, and lack of “social fluff” Recommended Strategy Be direct and structured (neutral), not abusive. We have been told to treat AI chatbots like polite colleagues. Saying “please” and “thank you” to […]