There are two conflicting perspectives regarding the relationship between profanity and dishonesty. These two forms of norm-violating behavior share common causes and are often considered to be positively related. On the other hand, however, profanity is often used to express one’s genuine feelings and could therefore be negatively related to dishonesty. In three studies, we explored the relationship between profanity and honesty. We examined profanity and honesty first with profanity behavior and lying on a scale in the lab (Study 1; $N$ = 276), then with a linguistic analysis of real-life social interactions on Facebook (Study 2; $N$ = 73,789), and finally with profanity and integrity indexes for the aggregate level of U.S. states (Study 3; $N$ = 50 states). We found a consistent positive relationship between profanity and honesty; profanity was associated with less lying and deception at the individual level and with higher integrity at the society level.
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机译：关于亵渎和不诚实之间的关系有两种相互矛盾的观点。这两种违反规范的行为有着共同的原因，通常被认为是正相关的。但是，另一方面，亵渎行为通常用来表达一个人的真实感受，因此可能与不诚实行为负相关。在三项研究中，我们探讨了亵渎和诚实之间的关系。我们首先通过亵渎行为并在实验室中进行了大规模调查来研究亵渎和诚实（研究1； $ N $ = 276），然后对Facebook上的现实社会互动进行了语言分析（研究2； $ N $ = 73,789） ），最后是美国各州总体水平的亵渎性和完整性指数（研究3； $ N $ = 50个州）。我们发现亵渎和诚实之间始终存在积极的关系。亵渎行为在个人层面上减少了说谎和欺骗，在社会层面上则具有较高的正直度。
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