Alex Ferguson-style ‘hairdryer remedy’ foul-mouthed rants can ‘really work’
New research suggests Alex Ferguson-style workplace rants can actually have a positive impact on some employees, despite others disliking sweary bosses
Boffins have revealed that giving your team an Alex Ferguson-style earful might not be a bad thing(Image: The FA via Getty Images)
Tired of watching your mouth around the office? Well, hold onto your desk chairs, because top researchers have revealed that giving your team an earful might not be a bad thing after all.
For decades, football legends have sworn by the terrifying power of the workplace rant. None more so than legendary former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
Fergie was notorious for his terrifying “hairdryer treatment” – getting right into players’ faces, screaming at the top of his lungs and peppering his rants with enough four-letter words to make a sailor blush. Former United star David Beckham famously bore the brunt of Sir Alex’s temper, while Wayne Rooney once admitted that there was “nothing worse” than getting a full-blown rant from the Scotsman.
Experts surveyed 5,660 employees to find out if launching into a foul-mouthed tirade actually helps (Stock image)(Image: Photothek via Getty Images)
While the world has changed since then, academic experts say you might not need to stop swearing at work. Writing in The Conversation, Alexandros Psychogios, professor of human resource management at Loughborough University, and Dritjon Gruda, Associate Professor in Organisational Behaviour at Universidade Católica Portuguesa, revealed the findings of their study into swearing bosses.
The boffins surveyed 5,660 employees across 19 countries to find out if launching into a foul-mouthed tirade actually helps or hurts a boss’s reputation.
A boss who drops F-bombs is seen as more impressive by some workers (Stock image)(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
The academics wrote: “Our research suggests people’s reactions to a sweary boss depend not only on what is being said, but also on who is listening and where they live.”
While they conceded that “overall, employees were less satisfied with supervisors who frequently used profanity,” they discovered that for a certain type of worker, a boss who drops F-bombs is seen as more impressive.
The researchers found that staff who considered themselves to have “more psychopathic and Machiavellian personality traits” reported greater satisfaction with their leader as profanity increased.
Staff with ‘more psychopathic and Machiavellian personality traits’ prefer a foul-mouthed gaffer like Fergie(Image: PA)
Explaining why these ruthless workers prefer a foul-mouthed gaffer, the boffins said: “Psychopathy and Machiavellianism both involve a certain level of emotional detachment and a willingness to disregard social norms, including the norm that bosses shouldn’t swear.
“For these people, a boss who swears may come across as more genuine and confident, unconstrained by unnecessary rules.” But they were quick to add a word of warning for hot-headed managers looking to unleash their inner Fergie on everyone in the office.
They caveated the findings by pointing out that for many staff, getting sworn at is a total turn-off. The boffins highlighted that, “in countries with lower levels of equality…workplace hierarchies carry greater weight, so a leader’s swearing is less likely to be read as friendliness or authenticity and more likely to be seen as a display of dominance.”
So before you go full hairdryers-at-dawn on your workforce, you might want to think twice about who is sitting across from you.
Summarising their findings, the boffins said: “So, should leaders stop swearing altogether? Not necessarily. But they should recognise that effective leadership isn’t about finding one communication style that works for everyone.
“It’s about understanding your audience. Knowing your team is just as important as choosing the right (or wrong) words.”
