Q: It seems to me that people are more inclined to swear these days than they were 40 or 50 years ago.
This is particularly true of the “F” word. It was simply unheard of when I was a kid, but that is not true now.
If I am right and more people are swearing, is this a good thing or a bad thing?
A: Psychologists who have researched vulgarity are suggesting that swearing serves a great value for any number of people.
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The most obvious benefit from swearing is that it siphons off that energy exploding when people either hurt themselves (hitting your thumb with the hammer is almost a universal excuse to swear) or are totally frustrated.
If we don’t swear in the moment someone else might get hurt. And once that energy has found a release valve in the vulgar side of the brain, the more rational part of your thinking mechanism can take over.
That part is easy to understand and likely you would agree that you, as have many others, have sworn in the moment for those very reasons. It clears the way for being sensible.
The part that is confusing is that people seem to be swearing more in today’s world than they used to in times gone by.
But I am not sure that they are really swearing. They use more vulgar words, including the infamous “F” word, in today’s world than they did back then, but it is different and it is certainly in a different context.
It is almost as if those terrible words that you dare not speak in front of your mother have for many people become the cornerstone of their social networks.
Think of it this way. If you and your wife took a holiday trip to Quebec City you would probably try to practise your high school French with the local people living there to briefly try to be a part of their culture. Similarly, you would try to learn a little Cree if you checked in at one of our First Nations communities, and the language of the Dene if you headed up to our northern territories. We try to belong to our social networks by speaking the language of the masses.
Surely, the same is true for vulgarity. People are trying to belong to various social groups by being vulgar. They sense that using those otherwise swearing words give them an “in” with the crowd.
The problem is that it is limiting. While it may be true that being vulgar will score some social points for a person when he or she is springing for a round during the weekly meeting of the TGIF (thank God it’s Friday) club, being vulgar will not likely do anyone much good when they are interviewing for a promotion, making new friends in the neighbourhood or visiting Grandma in her long-term care facility.
Despite the popularity of vulgarity, a great many people continue to find it offensive and will avoid those whose language is questionable.
Swearing is swearing and it can be psychologically useful, but just being vulgar for the sake of being vulgar, even if it has hit new heights in popularity, is still limiting and if I were to raise my children over again I would still tell them not to use those offensive words.
Jacklin Andrews is a family counsellor from Saskatchewan. Contact: jandrews@producer.com.
