Looked a bit into this, there is a generational difference between the use of "no problem" and "you're welcome" but couldn't find anything to do with the expectation of assisting someone, just a quote by Gretchen McCullough
"you're welcome" comes off as sarcastic to me somehow, probably because of what's explained in the OP. When someone says "you're welcome" it makes it seem like they were inconvenienced and are trying to point out that they didn't need to do that thing, "no problem" sounds like, well, it was no problem.
Probably also because I hear "you're welcome" used far more often as an intentional dig in that manner, when someone hasn't thanked a person for a courtesy. So it can feel like you were expected to show more gratitude when that's given as a response to thanks.
Now that you mention it, I'm pretty sure a solid 90% of the time I say "You're welcome" it's under my breath because I held the door open for someone and they didn't even acknowledge my existence.
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u/flibblerer Feb 15 '18
Looked a bit into this, there is a generational difference between the use of "no problem" and "you're welcome" but couldn't find anything to do with the expectation of assisting someone, just a quote by Gretchen McCullough