Contrary To Popular Belief, Swearing Can Be A Sign Of High Intelligence

by N/A, 10 years ago | 2 min read

You've heard it countless times - "swearing means you lack a good vocabulary" or "cursing is a sign of a low IQ." Right?

Wrong! Actually, people who use profanity are smarter than people who don't, according to a new study. F*ck yeah!

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Is your swear jar overflowing? Are you tired of being told your "potty mouth" means you lack intelligence? Well, science has good news for you!

A new study shows that people who swear have stronger language skills than people who don't.

The study was conducted by psychologists at Marist College and the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.

To test the hypothesis, participants were asked to name as many swear words that came to mind within a minute. Next, they were asked to rattle off non-swear words like different animal names within the same time frame.

Those with more swear word fluency boasted an impressive vocabulary - thus proving the connection between swearing and having an overall larger vocabulary.

"… the ability to generate taboo language is not an index of overall language poverty," the study concluded.

In addition, researchers separated types of swear words into categories (slurs, sexual terms, etc.) and found that "speakers who use taboo words understand their general expressive content as well as nuanced distinctions that must be drawn to use slurs appropriately." So basically, swearing is a sign of verbal intelligence rather than a lack of proper vocabulary.

Oh yeah, and to make things more f-ing awesome, people who curse are also hotter and healthier.

Another study found that swearing is actually a sign of emotional strength because we are able to cope with stressors that make us feel a strong way.

So yeah, next time anyone gives you shit for swearing you can be all like:

'CAUSE I'M SMARTER THAN YOU, BITCH!