...sorry, have you lost the will to live, yet?
I know, let's start with who paid for the research (Kelloggs, and especially their diet cornflake brand Special K) and the survey's sample size (2,000).
I can't find any information on peer-reviewing, or on who conducted the survey, or by what means, so let's get on to what the survey was aiming to show. It was that women feel belittled by certain words.
The survey has produced a list of twenty words that it claims that women would like to see banned (though in fact, if you read the actual results which disclose what percentage of the respondents wants each word banned, you'll find that it's done nothing of the kind).
The words which a majority of women who took part on the survey really would like to see banned are hormonal (68%) drama queen (56%) bitchy (53%) and high maintenance (51%).
Hysterical comes next at 50 per cent, so that's a maybe.
I don't know how the survey was conducted - whether the words were suggested to the respondents, or whether the words were volunteered by the respondents themselves (unlikely, given the results, but I don't know). Whichever it was, of equal interest are the words which nearly everyone, even out of this sample of women who agreed to answer a survey linked to a diet cereal about discrimination against women, don't mind.
They are difficult (21% objecting) sexy (20%) aggressive (10%) sassy (16%) and feisty (14%).
I volunteer this information as a public service.
My own opinion is that using the words in the second list rather than those in the first might well save a lot of people a lot of grief.
Well, it has to be worth a try, anyway.
Word Not To Use Today: hormonal. This word comes from the Greek word horman to stir up or urge on, from hormē impulse or assault.
It might also be worth bearing in mind that testosterone is a hormone.
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