Pronoun Problems

Pronouns and Gender

It’s considered socially insensitive to automatically use male pronouns where a person’s gender is not known.
Socially insensitive: Be careful with your antecedents, or your reader will lose his place.

The common solution, of mixing a singular noun with a plural pronoun, however, is worse.
Grammatically incorrect: Be careful with your antecedents, or your reader will lose their place.

One correct but awkward solution is to alternate male and female pronouns in your writing.
Correct: Be careful with your antecedents, or your reader will lose her place.
Another solution is to stick with plurals.
Correct: Be careful with your antecedents, or your readers will lose their place.

Pronouns and Number

Pronouns must agree in number with the nouns they represent. Singular nouns, like officer, cannot be represented by plural pronouns, like they.

Incorrect: It is unlikely that a police officer will admit that they used excessive force.
Correct but gender insensitive: It is unlikely that a police officer will admit that he used excessive force.
Correct but clumsy: It is unlikely that a police officer will admit that he or she used excessive force.
Correct: It is unlikely that police officers will admit that they used excessive force.
Correct because it eliminates the pronoun: Police officers rarely admit to using excessive force.

Incorrect: If the suspect suffers “great bodily harm,” they have the right to defend themselves.
Correct but gender insensitive: If the suspect suffers “great bodily harm,” he has the right to defend himself.
Correct but clumsy: If the suspect suffers “great bodily harm,” he or she has the right to defend himself or herself.
Correct: If the suspects suffer “great bodily harm,” they have the right to defend themselves.
Correct because it avoids the pronoun: Suspects who suffer  “great bodily harm” have the right to self-defense.