Foul language enhances physical productivity - experimental data

Saying a strong word at the moment of irritation is not only pleasant, but can also help physically - this conclusion was reached by researchers whose work was published by the American Psychological Association (APA) in the journal American Psychologist.

The authors note: in many situations, people consciously or unconsciously "hold themselves", not using strength and stamina to the maximum. And scolding, it is suggested, helps to switch more quickly into a more decisive mode - to become more confident, less distracted and "finish" the task.

What was already known

Previously, Richard Stevens' group (Keele University, UK) and other researchers have repeatedly found the same effect: when people swear, they perform better on physical challenges. For example, they hold their hand in ice water longer or endure body weight holding exercises longer. According to the author, this observation has been replicated many times and is considered reliable.

The main question remained different: why does swearing work? The team hypothesised that it's down to a state of 'disinhibition' - when social constraints are loosened and a person more easily overcomes internal barriers and doubts.

How the hypothesis was tested

The scientists conducted two experiments with a total of 192 participants. In both cases, the subjects were asked to repeat every two seconds either a swear word of their choice or a neutral word - and in parallel to perform a "chair pushup" exercise.

After the task, the participants answered questions about their state of mind during the exercise: how confident they were, whether they were distracted, whether they felt positive emotions, whether they thought what was happening was funny, and whether they were in a state of psychological "flow " - when a person is maximally engaged, collected and acts with ease and focus.

What happened

As in previous studies, participants who swore on average held theirbody weight significantly longerthan those who repeated neutral words.

When the researchers combined the results of the two new experiments with data from the earlier work, they concluded that the difference was best explained by changes in psychological state - an increase in perceived "flow," self-confidence and attention patterns (including distractibility), which together reflect a reduction in internal brakes.

The authors call swearing an "accessible tool" - no cost, no drugs and no complex techniques - that can produce small but practical gains in results when hesitation and uncertainty need to be overcome.

What's next

In future studies, the team plans to test whether this effect works in situations where people are particularly prone to "slowing down" - for example, in public speaking and in social-romantic scenarios, where self-censorship and fear of making a mistake are often activated.