Should Psychotherapists Swear? An Empirical Analog Study Exploring Therapist Gender and Who Swears First

ABSTRACT Background Should psychotherapists use swear words during sessions? How might such language affect the way therapists are perceived? Method In this empirical analog study, participants ( n = 188) read original vignettes of a therapist‐client interaction and then completed a questionnaire assessing perception of the therapist. The vignettes differed in terms of swearing presence/sequence and gender of the therapist. Results Results produced no significant main effects for therapist gender or swearing presence/sequence. Conclusions Results suggest that therapists may not need to filter out swear words during sessions to obtain or preserve clients’ favorable perceptions. Limitations and future directions are discussed.