Haha, I found this funny: I ain't French (I am Serbian), and I am quite like that: my friends have frequently made fun of me for it.
But to put things in perspective, starting with "No" gives me a bit of a time to think about the proposition, and then during the response, perhaps change my stance and switch to "yes": I am basically buying time. It's just a "but" away :-)
Interestingly, my 2.4 year old kid is starting to do the same: — "do you want go outside?" — "no, LET'S GO!". That made me think if it was one of my parents who did this as well, but I can't definitely pinpoint it. My dad usually just takes a bit more time to answer instead (he's a uni professor, so maybe he evolved from a "no"-first person :-), and my mom is definitely not a "protester".
So, while it _might_ be cultural in France (or perhaps French as a language?), you can get it anywhere else too.
But to put things in perspective, starting with "No" gives me a bit of a time to think about the proposition, and then during the response, perhaps change my stance and switch to "yes": I am basically buying time. It's just a "but" away :-)
Interestingly, my 2.4 year old kid is starting to do the same: — "do you want go outside?" — "no, LET'S GO!". That made me think if it was one of my parents who did this as well, but I can't definitely pinpoint it. My dad usually just takes a bit more time to answer instead (he's a uni professor, so maybe he evolved from a "no"-first person :-), and my mom is definitely not a "protester".
So, while it _might_ be cultural in France (or perhaps French as a language?), you can get it anywhere else too.