Swearing may temporarily increase grip strength and activate brain motivational centres

Swearing as a tool for physical acceleration

New scientific data suggests that the use of profanity may temporarily increase physical strength and activate brain motivational systems. However, unlike previous assumptions, the study did not find a reduction in the neural response to errors. The results were published in the Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology. The work confirmed previously known facts that swearing improves physical performance and emotional engagement, and also showed increased activity in the so-called behavioural approach system. However, the expected reduction of the signal known as error-related negativity (ERN) did not occur.

The hypothesis of temporary disinhibition

Profane words often carry a powerful emotional charge. Previously, scientists noted that swearing can reduce pain and improve physical performance. A possible explanation is that swearing temporarily weakens behavioural constraints, allowing a person to focus on the action rather than self-control. This state, called "state disinhibition", may increase emotional arousal and release energy for the current task.

Although previous studies indicated increased strength due to the activation of parts of the nervous system associated with emotions and motivation, the exact brain mechanisms remained unknown. Researchers paid particular attention to whether swearing affects the brain's ability to monitor errors, which is usually reflected by the ERN signal.

Experimental methodology

ERN is a burst of electrical activity in the brain that occurs immediately after an error. It is believed to reflect an internal monitoring system and becomes larger when a person is more focused on accuracy or worried about possible mistakes. Researchers assumed that if swearing leads to disinhibition, the ERN amplitude should decrease, indicating less concern about behavioural control.

The study involved 52 participants, mostly university students. A within-subjects design was used. Each participant performed the same tasks under two conditions: with repeated use of a profane word of their own choice (e.g., "fuck" or "shit") and with a neutral word (e.g., "wood" or "flat").

Each trial began with the loud repetition of the assigned word for 10 seconds. After this, participants performed a grip strength task, squeezing a dynamometer with all their might using their dominant hand. They also completed the Flanker task, which involves determining the direction of an arrow while ignoring distracting arrows on the sides. This task is often used to study attentional control and provides enough errors to measure ERN using electroencephalography (EEG).

In addition to strength and EEG measurements, participants completed questionnaires after each stage. They assessed their emotional state, distraction, novelty, humour, anxiety, self-confidence, and the behavioural activation system associated with motivation. Particular attention was paid to the BAS Drive subscale, which measures how strongly a person feels the need to achieve a goal.

Results: strength and motivation increase

As expected, after repeating a profane word, participants demonstrated greater grip strength compared to the neutral word. On average, their strength increased by approximately 1.4 kilograms. This is consistent with previous studies and confirms the idea of temporary physical acceleration from swearing.

Swearing also affected emotional and motivational states. During the swearing condition, higher levels of positive emotions, greater distraction, and more humour were observed. These effects correspond to previous data suggesting that swearing makes people more energetic and emotionally engaged.

Significantly, swearing substantially increased scores on the BAS Drive scale. This indicates that profane language enhances the desire to act and achieve goals, which corresponds to the idea of a motivational shift towards goal-directed behaviour. However, other subscales related to reward seeking and sensitivity to reward did not show significant changes, and no evidence of a decrease in behavioural inhibition system scores was found.

Unexpected stability of the brain signal

The expected changes in the brain's error monitoring signal were not observed. Contrary to predictions, the ERN amplitude did not decrease after swearing. This means that the brain's internal reaction to errors remained just as strong, regardless of whether the participant was swearing or not. Since ERN is considered a reflection of behavioural monitoring, its stability casts doubt on whether swearing truly reduces self-control as researchers had assumed.

Mediation analysis also showed that changes in ERN amplitude do not explain the link between swearing and increased grip strength.

The results support the idea that swearing may temporarily increase performance and alter emotional and motivational states. Increased grip strength, higher levels of humour, positive emotions, and BAS Drive indicate a short-term shift in brain motivational systems after the use of profane language.

Limitations and possible explanations

The absence of changes in the ERN signal casts doubt on the assumption that swearing reduces behavioural monitoring. Perhaps ERN is not as sensitive to temporary disinhibition as previously thought, or the effect of swearing on disinhibition does not last long enough to affect the ERN, which was measured a few minutes after verbalisation.

Another possibility is that swearing affects some motivational circuits more strongly than others. For example, the increase in BAS Drive indicates heightened goal-directed behaviour, but this does not necessarily mean that the brain's conflict monitoring system is switched off.

Interestingly, although swearing increased positive emotions, it also slightly increased the level of negative emotions according to self-assessment. Researchers suggest that this may reflect anger rather than anxiety, which also corresponds to a picture of increased emotional arousal and motivation.

Scientists note several factors that may have influenced the results. The main concern is related to task timing. The Flanker test and EEG measurements took place after the swearing phase, and there is a likelihood that any disinhibiting effects had faded by the time the ERN was recorded. In future studies, faster timing or repeated swearing during the task could help detect subtle neural changes.

The sample size, although sufficient for behavioural analysis, was relatively small for EEG studies. In addition, some participants had to be excluded due to technical issues or unusable EEG data. This further reduced statistical power, especially for smaller effects such as changes in ERN amplitude.

Another limitation is the reliance on self-report for measuring motivational state. Although the BAS Drive scale provided useful information, it may not cover all relevant aspects of disinhibition or brain activity. Future studies may use more direct physiological or neuroimaging methods.

The results also raise questions about how long the effects of swearing last and whether they generalise to different tasks or populations. It is unknown whether swearing will have a similar effect in older people, in more stressful environments, or with repeated use over time.

The study provides additional support for the idea that swearing may temporarily increase physical strength and enhance motivational states such as drive and positive emotions. These effects are consistent with the theory that swearing causes a short-term state of disinhibition. However, the expected suppression of the brain's error monitoring signal was not observed, which casts doubt on whether swearing truly reduces behavioural self-control at the neural level.

Although the results indicate psychological and physiological effects of swearing that may affect performance, more work is needed to understand the exact neural mechanisms. Future studies may examine how long these effects last, whether they generalise in different contexts, and how best to measure immediate changes in behavioural inhibition and conflict monitoring.

The study titled "The effect of swearing on error-related negativity as an indicator for state disinhibition" was conducted by Venja Beck, Joseph L Brooks, and Richard Stephens.