I will be the first to admit that I curse, a lot. I am always smart about who I swear around, but sometimes it just slips out. If something exciting happens or if something terrible happens, an expletive is sure to come out of my mouth. I have also noticed that ever since I have been on campus, my swearing has gotten worse. I went home for the weekend recently and my mother was shocked at my vocabulary. There are often lots of people who tell me that I should swear less. But could there be any positives to cursing?
According to Time, a study was done at Keele University in England by psychologists who determined that “cursing is a harmless, creative emotional release that can make you feel stronger”. These psychologists conducted an experiment where subjects were asked to play aggressive video games. From this test, they determined that “profanity can be an emotional coping mechanism which makes us feel more resilient”. And this is not the first test that the university has conducted on the topic of swearing; in fact, they have been studying the science behind cursing for years. Psychologists have stated that in many instances, profanity is used for many more reasons than just being rude.
Psychology Today reports that there are 7 benefits to using profanity in our everyday lives. Some include gaining power over a bad situation, pain relief, humor, and bonding with other. Cursing can bring people together, make you laugh, or make you feel better after stubbing your toe. And there are lots of people who agree with this idea.
Depending on where you live, there may be different views on the use of profanity. Some places in the world, such as Ireland, treat certain words differently than we do in the United States; a word that may be mildly offensive in Ireland could be found very offensive here in the states. Moreover, a person from a large city may have more of dirty mouth than someone who was raised on a farm out west.
There is a lot of controversy surrounding the use of profanity. But in the end, there are actual benefits to using it. Although it is proven that swearing can be beneficial in certain instances, that doesn’t always mean it is appropriate; so, swear at your own risk.
I found this to be a really cool blog topic because cursing usually has such a negative stigma to it, so it’s refreshing to hear a new perspective! My parents have always been against cursing and discourage me from using it because they think its not “classy” and is very “vulgar.” But it’s comforting to know that it is actually proven by studies as an emotional coping mechanism. This is a really relevant topic in our culture as cursing is so common for teenagers to throw around when conversing with others. This blog has made me really think about how profanity can be viewed differently based on age, where you live, etc and that there is no right or wrong viewpoint on it.
I wonder if everyone caught on to this trend, if it would still reek the same benefits as it would now by cursing more often. If everyone tried to use this method of relieving stress, eventually it would reach the point where this language was accepted or normal. My thinking is this: Cursing is only cursing because of the words our society has deemed as “bad”, “wrong”, or “rude”. The idea of cursing is actually quite arbitrary. If everyone cursed to relieve stress or to be funny, would it still relieve stress or be as funny twenty years down the road? If we deem our current curse words as acceptable in the future, maybe we will have to develop a new set of words that elicit this same response the article is referring to.
This is a phenomenal topic! I also have a cursing problem, but now maybe it isn’t as big of a problem as I thought it was. Cursing allows myself to express the emotion I am feeling in an extreme way. I also think as time continues, it is becoming more acceptable in society. Just think, when we were really young it was a thing that parents would actually wash their kids mouths out with soap to teach them a lesson not to curse. Now much younger kids curse and we do not really hear of the soap technique being used anymore.
I have always found it curious why we are able to control our cursing so well when we are around certain people. For example, I am able to control the level of my profanity when I am around my parents, however, when I am with friends I am less likely to watch what I say.
If there is one thing I gained more than knowledge after reading this post, it’s relief- I swear all the time on campus. Although I keep my sailor mouth quiet when it needs to be quiet…when it has the opportunity to open, it opens wide. Perhaps, it opens too wide. So, after reading the blog post, it is of course a relief to find out there’s no emotional, physical, or mental detriment to myself when I swear. In fact, there’s a benefit!
However, in the broad scheme of things, swearing has never really made sense to me. After all, a swear word is just simply a word. It’s not a damning action. It’s not a condemning motive. It’s not a deceitful lie. No, instead, it’s simply a word that expresses disgust. Since we’ve been children, we have been taught that “names will never hurt us” and “words are but words”- and it’s true. As mentioned in the blog, swearing is treated differently throughout the world. So this gives rise to the question…if swearing is “less bad” in other nations, is the benefit still as high for them? And what part of swearing makes it so sacrilegious? Do we enjoy it for the same reason we sadly enjoy other sins? More information can be found here
I like the different perspective you gave on cursing in this article. I thought the viewpoint you took was very interesting, as I’ve never thought of it that way. I do agree that after swearing, it does make me feel better and now I understand why. This article really relates to real life and I’m glad you looked further into it because it’s really cool to think about.
Swearing is just a part of my vocabulary and I don’t think I could ever get rid of it. Swearing should be used only in certain circumstances and I believe it actually makes you sound more intelligent depending on who you talk to. Cursing in a natural part of speech that slips out no matter how hard you try.
I always find myself cursing so i thought it was quiet interesting that there are some positive psychological effects that cursing can have. I can relate to cursing helping you feel better, and even help you to bond with someone else.
In my house growing up, my parents freely used swear words on a daily basis. Therefore, they have become part of the language I use everyday. Especially when mad, I know I curse more. Subconsciously I think cursing has always given me that “fuzzy” feeling inside, which made me do it more, but I never realized why I actually did it. After reading your article, it makes sense. I came across this quiz on Buzzfeed, and I think it would be interesting for you to take! You never realize how many words you actually say until they are all written out in front of you. I appreciate the different aspects of research you took on this article!
I think my bad habit of cursing comes from twelve years of participating in competitive sports. Some things I have heard while playing sports are things that should never be repeated again, that’s how bad it can get. In the heat of athletic competition, people curse and “talk trash” to each other, and I think it helps psychologically make yourself feel better and you are letting out emotion when you curse.