People Who Swear Are Better Friends, According to a Study

If you were asked, “Are you a good friend?” and you answered, “#*%@, yeah I am,” then you might very well be the best friend a person could ask for, according to a study. As children, we were always taught that swearing is bad and not to do it, but remember the first time you heard one of your friends swear? It more than likely brought you a little closer together.

We at Bright Side love our friends who can perfectly punctuate a point with a cuss word and have gathered a few reasons why people who swear make excellent friends.

1. They’ll tell you the truth.

Swearing can be an involuntary act, and it often just slips out in moments of heightened emotion. A study found that someone who swears is more likely to be unfiltered, sincere, and less likely to censor themselves.

Cussing can be proof that a person is telling their honest opinion and not filtering themselves or their views, which is such a valuable trait in a friend. Sometimes we need a friend to tell us what we need to hear, not what we want to hear.

2. They’ll give sage advice.

It’s often assumed that the more a person curses, the less intelligent they are, as they’re presumed to have a lack of vocabulary to fully express themselves.

A study showed that the more fluent a person is in a language, the more effectively they use swear words to convey and articulate themselves, and the more diverse and extensive their vocabulary is.

3. They’ll be someone you can trust.

Swearing amongst friends requires a certain level of reliance that what has been said doesn’t leave the circle of trust. Case studies showed that teams that worked well together, like in manufacturing and IT, were more comfortable joking with each other, which included swearing and having a certain level of trust with one another.

4. Swearing can be good for us.

In a study, volunteers were asked to put their hands in ice-cold water on 2 separate occasions. One time, they could swear as much as they liked, and the other, they were instructed to use a neutral word. The participants were able to withstand more pain when they were free to swear.

So next time you stub your toe, step on a Lego piece, or bang your funny bone, give yourself permission to let the swear words fly — it might help reduce the pain.

This also was the case with emotional pain, as letting out our frustrations made it less likely for us to act out physically.

What do you think? Do you have friends who swear like sailors? If so, do they make good friends?