shouldstyle

Shouldstyle is a term used in technical writing and knowledge-management contexts to describe a writing approach that emphasizes prescriptive guidance. In shouldstyle, statements convey recommended actions or required behavior using modals such as should, must, or ought to, with the goal of reducing ambiguity and improving user compliance.

The term arose in discussions of documentation style in the 2010s and 2020s as a descriptive shorthand for documents that favor directive language over hedged or speculative phrasing. It is not tied to a single organization, and definitions vary by community.

Core features of shouldstyle include explicit prescriptions, a consistent voice and tense, clear scope and exceptions, and a preference for imperative or modal sentences. It often employs second-person directives for user-facing materials and third-person or passive constructions for system requirements.

Shouldstyle appears in a range of materials such as API references, installation guides, safety instructions, and onboarding documents. Examples include: “You should install the latest security updates before proceeding.” and “The system should reject invalid input and return a 400 error.” The aim is to make guidance immediately actionable for readers.

Reception to shouldstyle is mixed. Proponents argue that it improves clarity and compliance, especially in procedural or safety-critical content. Critics warn that it can be overly rigid, reduce nuance, and risk misalignment with contexts that require hedged or conditional language due to uncertainty or variability.

See also: normative language, style guide, technical writing, policy documentation.