Holy shit – swearing in conference presentations works!

If you know me, or have heard me speak at conferences, you’ll know that I’m partial to the odd swear word. This is never planned, it is part of my everyday speech. I should add that I’m Scottish, which far from being an excuse, is simply a description of a culture more attuned to swearing than more mild-mannered England. Billy Connolly, a genius when it comes to oral delivery, could never have come from England. Ireland maybe, England never.

Swearing study

Let me start with some science. I’m not saying this study is definitive but it is at least one study, with a control, that shows the beneficial effect of swear words in presentations. A speech about 'lowering tuition fees' was delivered to three groups :

Group 1: Used ‘Damn’ at the start

Group 2: Used 'Damn' at the end

Group 3. No swearing at all

The swear word at the start or end had the most effect (defined as the ‘persuasiveness’ of the speech). It also enhanced the perceived intensity of the speaker. Interestingly, it neither enhanced or damaged their credibility.

Why I swear

I don't swear because this study gives me an excuse to juice up presentation style. I occasionally swear because I’ve always felt that swear words add something special – they’re the magic dust of language. 

First, when unexpected, they jolt people to attention. Who would deny that this is useful in the anodyne and often mind-numbingly, boring world of lectures, conferences and presentations. Second, attention is a necessary condition for learning – it aids retention.

Third, they have meanings which other words do not have. Shakespeare is full of filth and swear words. When I described Gove as someone who fitted his job like a ‘prick in a codpiece’, I felt as that this was a pretty good analogy.

Fourth, they’re emotive terms and if, like me, you argue that lectures and talks are hopeless on the transmission of knowledge or skills, but strong when affective, attitudinal or emotive, then they can play a vital role.

Fifth, it is time we started to puncture the pomposity and break the sheer boredom we witness at conferences and lectures. I’m not fond of those that cower behind lecterns, reading from pre-typed notes. Above all, I’m not fond of being bored. Which of us has never experienced the excruciating, almost painful levels of boredom at lectures and conferences?

Sixth, if you’re ‘offended’ by the occasional swear word, I’m offended by your lack of sensitivity toward freedom of speech and the cultural/linguistic norms of others. I find the censorship of ordinary language offensive.

Seventh, I don't give a fuck.

Blow-back

Having often sworn in presentations, I’ve received blow-back for swearing. At ALT, many moons ago, I was roundly tweckled for daring to suggest that lectures are an ineffective form of teaching (how radical). All I can say is that this talk led to me talking on this subject for a number of years ar universities all over the world. The YouTube versions reached over 25,000 people, and on the whole, it stimulated a pile of debate.
A second example was in a webinar for an Americal learning organisation about VR, where I wanted to show a video of a girl swearing while killing zombies in a VR game. They wanted it out of the presentation. As I was doing this for free, I said no. They came back and said, let's do it with  warning at the front. I said fine, as long as it's not me doing the warning. In the end we went ahead and there was no warning. What a load of baloney.

Conclusion

My friend, who was at the time a Board Member of Channel 4, told me of an instance of a game, where you have to get a pre-agreed word into your conference speech. At the annual Edinburgh TV Festival he told me of a speaker he knew who had to say ‘cunt’, which he did by asking the audience what words were banned by the BBC. See what I did there – swore at the start and the end – that’s science folks.