What The Experts Say About Using "I" In Writing

By now, you’ve probably noticed that I’m pretty passionate about pushing back on the “never use ‘I’” rule in writing. But it’s not just a personal opinion—it’s something backed up by research, too. Experts who study writing and composition are saying loud and clear: using “I” can be a good thing, and avoiding it might be doing more harm than good.

Take Julia Molinari, for example. She’s a researcher who’s spent a lot of time thinking about how academic writing works. In her dissertation, she points out that banning “I” doesn’t make writing more neutral—it just hides the person behind the words. She writes, “An absence of personal pronouns does not guarantee objectivity; it simply obscures the writer’s presence.” In other words, pretending the writer doesn’t exist doesn’t actually make the argument more fair or factual—it just makes it less transparent.

That made a lot of sense to me. I’ve read papers where the author avoids saying “I think” or “I believe,” but you can still tell it’s what they think. So what’s the point of hiding it?

Kimberly N. Parker also challenges this idea in her essay from Bad Ideas About Writing. She works with high school students, many of whom have been told for years not to use “I.” Parker argues that this rule makes students feel like outsiders in their own writing. Instead of seeing writing as something personal and expressive, students start to see it as just a task to get through—something to check off, not something to care about. That’s a big loss, both for the writer and for the quality of the writing.

These experts aren’t saying you should throw grammar out the window or write like you’re texting your friend. What they’re saying is that writing is better when you show up in it. Your ideas, your voice, your perspective—those things matter. And when they’re clear, your writing is often more effective.

In fact, many academic fields now encourage the use of first-person voice, especially in reflective or interpretive work. Disciplines like sociology, education, and even philosophy often rely on personal insight to build arguments. It’s not about being casual—it’s about being real with your audience.

There’s also a shift happening in writing education. Some college instructors now teach students how to use “I” responsibly instead of banning it. They encourage students to understand when it works, and why. And honestly, that seems like a much more useful lesson than “just don’t do it.”

Personally, hearing all this has made me feel more confident in my own voice. It’s not wrong to say what I think—it’s important. And the more I’ve leaned into that in my writing, the stronger and more honest my work has become.

Here’s something to consider:
Have you ever read something that felt more powerful because the writer used their personal perspective? What would it look like if more student writers were taught to do the same?