3 ms·
I wonder whether that effect should be normalized against a profanity baseline for the given person. i.e. I find it somewhat plausible that in an individual, s
by microtherion 8y ago
I wonder whether that effect should be normalized against a profanity baseline for the given person.
i.e. I find it somewhat plausible that in an individual, swearing more than usual is positively correlated with being more honest than usual. I find it less plausible that people who swear a lot in general are more honest than people who don't.
- reallydude 8y agoI can see it. The purpose of swearing, as it applies to primates, is suggested to be an additional channel of communication indicating types of danger (can't find the paper to link to, damnit). This includes a general "unknown" danger, as opposed to a directional danger from the ground or air. So the dispense of social norms (saying fuck a lot) to be more communicative is somewhat antithetical to sociopathic mimicry behavior, where you want to be more social nomative to achieve your predatory/anti-social goals.
- microtherion 8y agoThe baseline of how much swearing is customary varies by context (social class, profession, etc). It appears e.g. that swearing is quite common in Wall Street trading culture — not an environment known for a particular commitment to honesty.