Swearing by Peers in the Work Setting: Expectancy Violation Valence, Perceptions of Message, and Perceptions of Speaker

2012/03/22 by Danette Ifert Johnson · 1 voice · 2 citations
Social Sciences · Computer Science · Arts and Humanities · #Swearing, Euphemism, Multilingualism #Hate Speech and Cyberbullying Detection #Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies

paper · doi:10.1080/10510974.2011.638411

openalex publication_date 2012/03/22 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29

Abstract

Swearing is a frequent language form in a number of contexts, including the work setting. This investigation extends research on expectancy violations theory as an explanation for how people perceive swearing by examining violation valence. Study 1 concludes that violation valence is positively related to perceptions of message appropriateness and effectiveness and to perceptions of the speaker. Study 2 replicates these findings using a national sample. These results provide support for the role of expectancy violations in swearing and show that swearing is not always perceived as negative in work settings.

Citations

• Responses to Deception in the Workplace: Perceptions of Credibility, Power, and Trustworthiness

Cited by

• Swearing and perceptions of the speaker: A discursive approach
• The power of swearing: What we know and what we don’t

Discussions

• Valence: doi.org/10.1080/1051... [bsky, 2 points, 1 comments]

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