Your parents may sigh at your potty mouth, but all that effing and jeffing is actually good for you.
Swearing can make us more persuasive and can positively impact relationships when used to emphasise joy, according to new research. So call your best friend right now and tell them: “I fucking love you!”
The scientists, from universities across Sweden and the UK, including Keele, Ulster and Westminster, examined 100 academic papers on swearing to detect any possible benefits.
“Swearing produces effects that are not observed with other forms of language use. Thus, swearing is powerful,” they wrote. “It generates a range of distinctive outcomes: physiological, cognitive, emotional, pain-relieving, interactional and rhetorical.”
One paper looked at text messages and concluded that those containing swear words “were judged as more believable and/or persuasive than those without”.
Another paper concluded that swearing can lead to “social bonding and solidarity”, because we might litter a story with swear words among friends, but keep things more “polite” in professional settings or among acquaintances.
Perhaps one of the most useful findings was that swearing can actually lower your perception of pain.
One study explored this by asking participants to plunge their hands into icy water. Those who enjoyed a big old swear sesh while doing so were able to keep their hands in the water for longer, compared to those who kept shtum. They also reported lower levels of pain.
Of course, you should also be aware of the setting of swearing and the impact on others around you. Though swearing can take many positive forms, the research found that the primary motivation for it remains the release of anger and frustration.
But even then, it can be useful. One study found that swearing enables drivers to “cope with feelings of anger in stressful road situations”.
So there you have it. Swear to your heart’s content with your mates, say “shit” next time you stub your toe and call out that “bastard” driver who cut you up on the roundabout.
You’ll feel better for it.