Implications of Social context in the Usage of Taboo words in Tehrani Male and Female Speech

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Most researchers who have studied differences between the genders in language usage believe that women use language more correctly than men. For this reason, it has been argued that the use of taboo words cannot be considered as a quality of female speech. A considerable amount of research is carried out to see whether sociolinguistic factors, such as education and age, affect the use of taboo words.
The main objective of the present study is to investigate different linguistic behaviours in Tehrani Persian-speakers, with a focus on the differences in the applications of types of taboo words, the frequency of their usage, the effects of social context on the choice of such words, the addressee, and the incentives for or inhibitions on the use of taboo words. Three main variables were in focus: gender, two age groups (19-29 & 30-40), and education. The methodology consisted of the collection of taboo words which were later used in three different contexts (exclusively female, exclusively male, and combined context). Fifteen taboo words were selected from recorded cassettes and included in the questionnaires.
The findings demonstrated that: men use more taboo words than women; there exists a specific taboo word for men, and that both men and women at higher age use male specific taboos less frequently. The findings also showed that women with higher education attempt to be more polite, and that selection of typical addressees for using male-specific taboos is done discriminately in both age groups in males, who use them when addressing males. 

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Language and Linguistics
Volume 3, Issue 6 - Serial Number 6
October 2007
Pages 141-155

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