Is using foul language beneficial?

Krishna: I think one’s perception about bad language depends on the culture one ‘s born into.

People's reactions to a "bad" swear word compared to a euphemism that they understood to mean the same thing, suggest our strong emotional reactions to swear words happen as a result of early verbal conditioning, rather than the meaning that is conveyed.

Swearing can occur with any emotion and yield both positive or negative outcomes depending on cultures and mental statuses of people around.

Swear words can have a number of outcomes, as when used positively for joking or storytelling, stress management, fitting in with the crowd, or as a substitute for physical aggression.

It can be negative in case of abuse, discrimination and harassment.

Here in my place my friends and elders don’t take it easy if anybody uses foul language against them.

But there’s research coming out of Australia and New Zealand that says that jocular abuse, particularly swearing among friends, is a strong signal of the degree of trust that those friends share. One of the reasons why there’s probably this strong correlation is that swearing has such an emotional impact. You’re demonstrating that you have a sophisticated theory of mind about the person that you’re talking to, and that you have worked out where the limit is between being shocking enough to make them giggle or notice you’ve used it but not so shocking that they’ll be mortally offended. That’s a hard target to hit right in the bullseye. Using swear words appropriate for that person shows how well you know them; and how well you understand their mental model.

Research also says if you use swear words, you release your built up anger in a way that is helpful to your health. However, you should do it when no one is around. Otherwise more arguments ensue and more anger and resentment will have an opposite effect.

I read a research paper where a researcher stuck volunteers’ hands in ice water and randomized whether or not they were using a swear word or a neutral word and compared how long they could keep their hands in ice water. On average, when they were swearing they could keep their hands in the iced water for half as long again as when they were using a neutral word. This shows that the results are anything but maladaptive. It seems swearing sometimes allows you to withstand pain for longer! So, research shows swearing raises pain threshold (1).

Again here in my place we don’t use swear words to tolerate pain. We use words like ‘shhh’, ‘bah’, ‘mama’, and …. ‘pain’ itself to raise the threshold.

 A recent study found that swearing can be an effective coping strategy for dealing with road rage. 

And courts think about harm from speech in cases involving discrimination or sexual harassment. Still most public uses of taboo words are not in anger; they are innocuous or produce positive consequences (e.g., humour elicitation).

It seems people fluent in two languages respond far less strongly to swear words in their mother tongue than in their second language.

Based on the culture around me I think this is what people feel about swear words …

People who ‘re drunk use bad language more. So it is linked with negativity.

Old and invalid sometimes use it to express their helplessness and anger. Then it is associated with understanding and pity.

Children use it not knowing they are ‘bad’. This denotes innocence and ignorance.

When a highly educated or a literate person uses it, people resent it. It becomes bad then.

When politicians use it, it shows their arrogance.

When youngsters use it, it shows their careless attitude.

On the whole using bad language is treated as … well, ‘bad’.

So I think it is a mixed bag. And there is a clash between the science of psychology ( and some people say we need more data to support the claims of good effects) and culture.

Words are just words. They are neutral until you give the signs -ve or +ve to them. Once you put them in a bracket, that influences our mind and conditions it. Our emotions get attached to them and … the whole act of human psychology starts playing out.

Footnotes:

1. Swearing as a Response to Pain: Assessing Hypoalgesic Effects of No...).