From curse words that were culturally proscribed
yesterday to the same curse words that are commonly accepted today …
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| (Image credit: http://www.citytowninfo.com) |
… culture has come a long way indeed.
REPORTING RESEARCH RESULTS RELEVANT to verbal bullying at a meeting of the American Psychological Association,
Lilia Cortina and Vicky Magley found that rudeness is unbridled in the
workplace. Their study indicated that 71 percent of 1,100 surveyed workers said
that they had experienced pompous and outright rude behavior. Later on, with
the increasing encounters of uncivil behavior came symptoms of anxiety and
depression among victims of maltreatment. Those passive victims suffered the
worst mental health. Similarly, according to bullyingstatistics.org, “Many
victims of verbal bullying are affected in very real ways. Verbal bullying can
affect one’s self image, and affect someone in emotional and psychological
ways. This type of bullying can lead to low self-esteem, as well as depression
and other problems. It can aggravate problems that a victim may already be
experiencing at home or in other places.”
For 40 or 50 years, there has been an increased
exposure to lack of civility. A survey conducted by a nonprofit research group,
Public Agenda, reported 79 percent of interviewed adults said that lack of
respect and courtesy in the (American) society is a serious problem and more
than one-third confessed that they use foul language in public—clearly, this is
verbal bullying in public.
