Concentration, pain, memory… The unsuspected power of bad words

Friends of profanity, followers of the carter language, now you can justify your vulgarity with the support of science. On October 22, the linguistic magazine Lingua published a study on the use of profanity. Bringing together “a growing body of research from a variety of disciplines,” the study also highlights a key finding: swearing is powerful. It reveals that the latter are not only the manifestation of our dissatisfaction or the hallmark of those who are poorly educated, but have different functions and give rise to a multitude of physiological, emotional, but also interactional consequences.

Memory, endurance, strength, pain…: the benefits of bad words

Who has never profusely abused their coffee table after tripping over it? The pain immediately arrived, the word already echoed in the room. Do you recognize yourself? Don’t apologize, actually. According to the Lingua study, swearing has effects that other words don’t, such as relieving pain. They are also a good ally for building strength and endurance, so do it next time you try to swim in Brittany, this time you might be able to get into the water. They’re also vectors of arousal, so why not invite them to your next sex party? A little advice though, tell your partner before you start insulting them, he or she might take it badly. Finally, profanity increases attention span and boosts memory.

Had we known this earlier, we would have recited our multiplication tables, alternating between “shit” and “fuck it.” I’m not sure if the lover would have joined, but it’s never too late to learn. If swearing has that many effects on us, it could be related to childhood. According to this study, punishing a child for saying a bad word could create an emotional connection to the bad word. One more excuse for lovers of flowery words.

Cover image: Unsplash / Barnabas Lartey-Odoi Tetteh