Being bad

Nice people don’t swear, break wind, get angry or display selfishness. Sound familiar? In all societies we grow up learning how to behave — acquiring such moral maxims from our parents, teachers and others, then internalising them and passing them onto the next generation. While few would want a world without a moral value system, according to science some socially unacceptable behaviours can have surprising benefits. It all depends on context.

The power of swearing

Cussing, for instance, might be viewed negatively, but it can help you tolerate pain and increase your strength — pretty handy if you’re trying to lift heavy furniture or deal with particularly bad news.

A 2017 study, for example, found letting out a whopper gave participants undertaking an isometric handgrip test (a test of strength) an 8 per cent increase in manpower. Though small, it’s significant enough to make all the difference between whether you open the jar of pickles or not, the study authors say. Speculating on the possible mechanism of action, researcher Professor David Spierer hypothesised that cursing might function like a mindfulness mantra, reducing our perception of pain.

Timothy Jay, one of the world’s leading academic experts on swearing and a retired emeritus professor of psychology of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts,