How often do you swear or use other ‘bad language’:

a) When talking face-to-face with another person

b) When nobody else is around

c) When messaging/emailing/online

Choose your responses from the following answers:



Never 1 point

Once a year 2 points

A few times a year 3 points

Once a month 4 points

2-3 times a month 5 points

Once a week 6 points

2-3 times a week 7 points

4-6 times a week 8 points

Every day 9 points

Several times a day 10 points

When you have your three scores, add them together and divide by three to get your average. But before we see what that says about you, also answer the following question:



If you say you will do something, do you always keep your promise no matter how inconvenient? Yes or no?



The average score for swearing (based on an online sample of 300 people) is 6.5, so if you scored higher than this, you are officially more sweary than the average person. You are also probably more honest. A study published this month, led by Gilad Feldman of Maastricht University, found a positive correlation between swearing and honesty, as measured by yes/no questions like the one above. The logic is that nobody keeps every single promise, so if you said “yes”, you are almost certainly lying (if only to yourself). The researchers suggest the link between swearing and honesty is that colourful language is generally used to express one’s genuine feelings.



A fully referenced version of this article is available at benambridge.com. Order Psy-Q by Ben Ambridge (Profile Books, £8.99) for £6.99 at bookshop.theguardian.com