SAD LOVE QUOTES: Blowing off steam? Why an outburst of swearing increases our stress levels

Monday, August 1, 2011

Blowing off steam? Why an outburst of swearing increases our stress levels

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By Daily Mail Reporter

Last updated at 1:09 PM on 1st August 2011

It's news that might surprise foul-mouthed celebrities such as Gordon Ramsay and Wayne Rooney.

But scientists now believe that swearing actually increases, not decreases, our stress levels.

This is because using foul language triggers a reaction deep inside the emotional centre of the brain, according to a study.

Pressure cooker: Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay is famed for his foul-mouthed diatribes. But scientists believe swearing increases our stress levels

The research contradicts the long-held belief that uttering a string of profanities when something goes wrong is a natural way of letting off steam.

Lead researcher Professor Jeffrey Bowers, of Bristol University's School of Experimental Psychology, said: 'Taboo words generate emotional reactions in part through verbal conditioning - that is, through a simple form of learning, the sounds of taboo words become directly associated with emotional centres in the brain.

'Accordingly, taboo words can evoke strong emotions even when they are uttered without any desire to offend.'

Professor Bowers and Dr Christopher Pleydell-Pearce, also of Bristol University, asked trial participants to read from three lists - one with swear words on it, another with euphemisms of those swear words, and a third containing neutral words.

Letting it out: Wayne Rooney stunned TV viewers when he launched into an F-word rant at a TV camera in April. Previous research has shown that swearing can act as a powerful painkiller

They then measured the volunteers' autonomic responses by electrodermal activity.

The scientists found that the autonomic responses to swear words were larger than to euphemisms and neutral words - that is, people find it more stressful to say aloud a swear word than its corresponding euphemism.

Professor Bowers said: 'Euphemisms such as the "F-word", clever acronyms whose meanings are clear - for example, "FCUK" - and taboo words learned later in life when learning a second language have not been associated with emotions through conditioning to the same extent, and as a result, do not trigger strong emotional responses.'

The researchers relate this swearing theory to the more general topic of 'linguistic relativity', or how language impacts on our thinking.

People may avoid thinking or conversing about certain topics in order to avoid saying aloud taboo words. It is not the topic they wish to avoid but the potential need to say aloud a given word.

The potential speech act discourages rather than encourages certain lines of thought and this, the researchers argue, constitutes a version of linguistic relativity.