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Swearing at Work is Bleeping Good For You
coondoggie writes "This is the kind of news that your HR folks don't want to hear, but researchers today said letting workers swear at will in the workplace can benefit employees and employers.
The study found regular use of profanity to express and reinforce solidarity among staff, enabling them to express their feelings, such as frustration, and develop social relationships, according to researchers at the University of East Anglia (UES). Researchers said their aim was to challenge leadership styles and suggest ideas for best practice. "Employees use swearing on a continuous basis, but not necessarily in a negative, abusive manner. Swearing was as a social phenomenon to reflect solidarity and enhance group cohesiveness, or as a psychological phenomenon to release stress, " the study stated." I'm sure the discussion and tags on this story will be completely G Rated ;)
Yea, people can communicate withought swearing. But this limits 'how' you communicate.
Limiting vocabulary impeads what you are really trying to say.
I can appreciate that some people are offended by some words. That doesn't always mean that the words are inappropriate.
I mean, ****, why am I always being ****ing censored at work. We're all ****ing adults here, right? ****.
More Twoson than Cupertino
It's true I tell you, feller at work's next door neighbour read it in the paper.
Here's the actual release from the source, rather than a Network World recap.
Now where the yotz did I put that frakking driver CD? I swear, if this FRELLING printer breaks down one more time, it's getting it right in the mivonks. Useless pile of dren, I knew we should have gone with the 4250.
Of course, it does have the downside of my coworkers looking at me like I'm insane, but then that really shouldn't come as news to anyone. If they haven't figured out that I'm magra-fahrbot by now, well, I can't be blamed.
Help protect civil rights from abuse by the TSA - visit TSA News Blog.
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Fuck ya! Does this research apply to jobs in daycare or elementary schools? "Ok you little shits, we're having a pop quiz."
Next they'll be saying that sex on your desk is good for productivity. And I'll keep on saying it...
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
It's about motherfucking time the real world caught up with the fucking military.
Geeks strike again 09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0
My office neighbor gets scary when he is having trouble figuring something out on his computer. He swears and bangs the table and it makes me scared. I don't think his behavior is helping anyone :-(
Abaddon: An Xbox 360 Indie game
Whilst in the right circumstances I can swear as much as the next person, at work and out in public, I don't like hearing it especially when people use it in every sentence without it even needing to be there. I have always considered really strong language to be the 11 on the amp - it's for when you need to get over the fact that something is really extreme i.e. big, massive, humungous, **ing huge.
Personally I'd find it stress inducing if I was surrounded by people swearing non stop all day. It has it's place and I'm happy with that but I don't want to hear it non stop, it demeans the person talking like that.
That said, I was sort of impressed by the moron chav who lived in the flat below mine once who managed a 16 word sentence which was all f**k or varients apart from 4 words and it made sense.
I want a list of atrocities done in your name - Recoil
Belgium, man. Just Belgium.
Cheers,
Ian
No. Like most things these days, it's all self service apart from the paperwork.
It's true I tell you, feller at work's next door neighbour read it in the paper.
Somehow I don't feel like this allows you to say 'This place is filled with fucking idiots' every 5 seconds
But at least I can think it
-nick
The point of the article is that being in an environment that allows greater freedom of expression is good for you. Not that swearing when it's inappropriate or against policy is good for you.
Though I've sworn at a client that was late in paying me $3000. But I was essentially in a situation where I had to demonstrate the fact that I owned (pwnd, rather) all their data before they paid me. So I felt rather justified.
Please stop stalking me, bro.
Wouldn't it lose it's luster if everyone were swearing all the time? I'm all for the unrestricted use of language everywhere, I think it's childish not to be, but wouldn't any positive side effects be related to the fact that being allowed to swear at work is unusual and kind of a privilege? Of course, once everyone got completely used to swearing, we'd all be better off anyway IMH fucking O.
Reminds me of my favorite superbowl commercial, I don't know how many times this got passed around the office.
Forcing people to behave artificially causes people to not be able to bond and communicate.
This rather obvious realization has been surfacing over the past few decades. 20 years ago professionals were expected to wear suits and ties to work. Today, most employers I've worked for only require that of sales people, or on certain ocassions. The average employee can wear jeans, at in their cube, swear, and scratch their butt. I think this leads to a more relaxed and more productive work environment.
Interestingly though, in the 80's, it was socially acceptable to have a drink during lunch. Now it is taboo to drink during work hours at all.
Actually, I'm finally at a work place where the IT department isn't F this and GD that. Frankly, I like it. You emulate those that you are around the most. I actually enjoy an environment that doesn't reward those talking like a salty sailor.
FUBAR
Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition. I think this is a phrase that originated in the military during WWII (The Great Patriotic War, to the Soviets). SNAFU
Situation Normal, All Fucked Up. I think this one originated in the military around the time of the Korean War or Vietnam.
We have always been at war with Eurasia!
I grew up in Britain but now work in America. When I figure I can get away with it, and when the situation calls for it, I sometimes let loose with a well-timed swear word. I can sense that my fully american colleagues are always a little bit shocked, however I also feel it REALLY gets their attention, and thus can be a good thing.
For example, I told my (then current) boss that the interference from her (then) boss had gotten completely out of hand. The way I phrased it was "I have nearly gotten to the point of just telling him to fuck off". That would be such a flagrant breach of protocol that I'm glad I didn't, however just /mentioning/ the word made the situation crystal clear (mention as oppose to use - it was hypothetical swearing).
In fact, work is almost the last frontier where swearing is still effective, and so it's the only place where's really still worthwhile. I suppose if I swore at customer support from some vendor it would also have an effect, but I have too much sympathy for what those people put up with.
Out on the street, or on public transport, however, swearing is just like noise on the signal. Any ten-year old kid can be overheard using "fuck, shit, motherfucker". One of the few words that still has some kick to it, for some reason, is "cunt". I think the most memorable usage was still in the Bridget Jones movie...
I once worked at police department, a very swear-friendly environment. I wound up swearing ALL the time, including around my family. I had to work hard to break this new habit. In the jobs that followed (outside of emergency services) it was obvious that people who swore alot not only seemed unprofessional they appeared to be poor communicators that could not express themselves without obscenities.
It's not a prohibition on swearing that's keeping people from expressing themselves at work; it's restrictive environments created by management where one doesn't express oneself out of fear of retaliation.
I enjoy swearing when it's the right time, but work is not the place for it, and swearing is not a workplace communication enhancer; it's a tool of anger, frustration and an inability to express one's full feeling on a subject.
It's not about the profanity, it's about the freedom to express your opinion without a ton of self-censoring. If you're working in a situation where you're going to get fired for swearing in a meeting, regardless of how frustrated you are, that's going to affect your performance and it's going to add a lot of stress, because you're going to be forever worrying about what you say to whom.
I used to have a mostly-female chain of command, and it was more difficult. Had a boss who decided I was a morale problem because I was willing to say what the whole department was thinking. Got called into the HR director's office once because I snapped at a co-worker in her earshot; no profanity mind you, just frustration. Not to say that there's anything wrong with women, but you can't cut loose on a female in a corporate environment without repercussions.
In contrast I absolutely lost my shit in front of my current boss (who is a corporate VP) over a complete snafu that I'd seen coming, and warned all the responsible people about and planned against, and goddamn it if they didn't do the ONE THING, THE ONE GODDAMN THING I TOLD THEM TO NEVER DO, and he let me run down, slapped me on the back, and said, "Done is done, let's get it fixed" and we went on from there.
Just nice to be in a situation where you can express your feelings, and sometimes there is a lot of profanity-inducing anger there, and not have to worry about your job. I'm pretty low key; I can keep it bottled up if I have to, but it makes for a less pleasant environment.
ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
One of the best parts of being a sailor was, well...swearing like a sailor. But in the time that I was in, the powers that be decided that it wasn't in the best interest of the navy to have sailors acting like...well, sailors. So no carousing, smoking, swearing, etc. Swearing "wasn't professional" and it didn't reflect the best interests of the Navy. I've even seen a swear jar implemented. No joke.
And this was on a submarine. No women. Limited cases of sexual harassment.
Fuck that. You could always tell the fools in the Chief's quarters (think mid level management) by how well they hewed to these rules. If they smoked, drank and swore, they were usually good guys. If they were teetotaling pricks, then they were not to be trusted. This, more than almost any other metric, helped to determine good bosses from bad for us.
- Me Good luck making progress in that situation.
Deleted
It sucks because it puts me in an awkward position of having to find racially diverse photos for every publication (since I oversee most publication design). Anyone with any experience with stock photos knows that blacks are not exactly well represented, since they're harder to light than whites and are a small minority in most states. And having to do our own photos is expensive and a huge lighting nightmare (If you don't believe it, try lighting a photo with guy whose skin is coal black standing next to a guy who looks like he just stepped off the boat from Ireland sometime). And God help me if I don't parse every sentence in every publication carefully. Someone slips in the word "Niggardly" without me catching it, and I'm out the door.
SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
It's about the office environment. If everyone is happy, and the bosses aren't sadists, then you don't get as much swearing. I swear when I get angry or frustrated, not when I'm hopping around, having a good day, feeling good about myself, etc.
Profanity doesn't make for a bad environment; bad environments make for profanity. And a bad environment that stifles profanity is a terrible environment.
ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
I found that wrecking stuff is a very good way to relieve stress.
Furthermore, I always thought of punching a client in the face, or nuts, and I think being allowed to do that would definitely help my stress, and the solidarity among me and the rest of the employees.
I'm sorry you got that from my comment.
My only problem with working with females is in this particular context; if I say something off the cuff, in frustration, they'll view it as more significant than a guy would.
This is because they are, in many ways, better at communication than a guy would be, and more sensitive to nuance.
So you've got to watch what you say, because they pay attention, and they'll think about it more. A guy just hears, "wawawawa" noises contexted with a tone of voice. A female will hear what you actually say, and then think about it, then try to reconcile it with your subsequent and prior actions.
This is just a generalization. Lots of guys behave in what I'm representing as the "female" mode, and there are a lot of women who pay as little or less attention to what you're saying as a guy would.
ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
As my pappy says,
Profanity is the linguistic crutch of a fucking ignoramus.
Damn right!
Best regards.
youtube.com/watch?v=EJJL5dxgVaM
If everyone who works in one groups swears around people who they deal with day to day, but are 'polite' to the others (higher levels of management, clients...). The swearing, and accepting of swearing becomes a subtle way of saying, that we are comfortable with each other, and when people get a long together, they usually work well together...
If that makes any fucking sense...
"I'll have a Guinness, no wait, make that a Coors Light" -Grad student I work with, who shall remain anonymous...
In Soviet Russia, vulgarities fire you!
Seriously, how is this news? I work for HP, and I've done nothing but swear with colleagues for the last 12 years. Not necessarily inside meetings, but sometimes definitely with customers on projects and whatnot.
I mean when you're in a data center and someone overwrites a production LUN to an Oracle Server because he took the wrong hardware path for his ignite restore, the customer won't say "Oh golly, that was rather unlucky, mate!" Shit no, we' be Fuck this and Fuck that. Or in sweden Jävla Faaaan! Hörrudu va'görru nu din dumma skit!. This is a completely normal thing if the shit hits the fan and the relationship is solid.
Most companies know this. Unless you're caught in an eternal re-run of Office Space.
I know people who got fired for profanity, as well. In fact, I fired one myself. But the context of the profanity was the problem and not the profanity.
In the case of the guy I fired, it was during a post-mortem review for a project. Probably 15 people in the room. He said, "I'd rather lick a dirty asshole than have to look at code." Five minutes after the meeting, the guy was fired. Although, I'd have fired him if he said, "I'd rather lick a dirty anus..."
When people create a hostile work environment through their words, they should be axed. But I don't think profanity itself is the issue.
The issue is that *a lot of times* profanity is used in conjunction with verbally creating a hostile work environment.
If a baby duck is a "duckling," why would anyone want to eat "dumplings?"
... before I started working here, I used to drink, smoke and swear for no reason at all. Now, thanks to this job, I have a reason.
Have gnu, will travel.
I always found it to be worse in the Northeast, because it is forever driven home that you are different different different, and you have to watch everything you say because everything that acknowledges that you are white and they are black is RACIST. You have to sit and pretend like there is no possible issue, and you worry about everything you say.
As opposed to the South. Now, don't get me wrong, there is a lot of racism in the South, but the thing is, the fact that we know it's there makes it possible to actually acknowledge it instead of just sitting around pretending there is no problem. There are things you can actually talk about without worrying that people are immediately going to be offended.
Just my opinion, but I've lived a decade in New York/New Jersey, and a decade in South Carolina/Georgia so I have a pretty deep perspective.
ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
Asshole: "This policy is fucking stupid. We should encourage the fucking customers to read the fucking manuals before they fucking call our fucking overworked-as-fuck support line."
Bitch: "You said 'fucking' to me! That's sexual harrassment!"
Asshole: "Relax. I'm just fucking with you."
Bitch: *gasp*
Asshole: "Gasp again. You look and sound so fucking sexy when you do that."
Bitch: "Oh, you're actually coming on to me? I thought you were just using profanity to offend me, so I was going to sue. But now.. Kiss me, you fool!"
See? It all works out. Nobody gets sued.
"Believe me!" -- Donald Trump
"I am the king of the Romans, and am superior to rules of grammar!"
-Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor (1368-1437)
You forgot:
BOHICA
Bend Over Here It Comes Again
A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing -- Emo Phillips
In fact, when I hear someone swearing, the first thing that comes to mind is that they're some uneducated, undisciplined ignoramus who can't be bothered to think for themselves or respect the rights of others.
Then you're a self-important, haughty jackass who prejudges people, and I think I speak for many others when I say I'm glad I don't work with/for people such as yourself.
I've never heard a highly performing engineer or programmer swear.
Then you haven't worked in very many workplaces. I work with a number of very talented individuals, and we all swear freely when it seems appropriate.
For some reason, they get a lot more respect than the guy who goes off into a litany of profanity.
Ah, I see, you just don't understand the point of the article. Here, let me explain, since your vast sense of self-importance seems to have clouded your ability to comprehend: we're talking about occasional use of profanity to express frustration, etc. However, that does not, despite your apparent confusion, immediately translate to using "fuck" every other word. Nor does it translate to using profanity as a mechanism for dealing with interpersonal issues.
Agreed, with one modification...
My grandfather served in the army, and relayed those same phrases to us, with "fouled" in place of "fucked". Kept everyone out of trouble if the CO's wife was around. His is actually my preferred version, as I can repeat it in polite company..
....but there are times where nothing fits but "WTF?!?"
Don't tell me to get a life. I'm a gamer; I have LOTS of lives!
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His response has remained with me all these years:
You should still be professional. I did a brief stint in retail, and managed to end up in charge by virtue of everyone over me being fired. I was on my way out, so I didn't give a damn...If some customer got rude, I threw them out of the store.
But I never swore at them. It's not professional. Ask them politely to leave. Ask them firmly to leave. Call the cops. I never had any problems, but I'm a big guy, and most people didn't try to get in my face.
ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.