Understanding the Psychology behind Varied Word Choice

Word choice not only has a deep impact on listeners but also speaks volumes about the person using them. Often this thought occurred to me till very recently I delved into theories of linguistic analysis. I soon realized that people with different personalities have a varying choice of words. You will notice that when people over-think how they speak, they tend to constrain the use of words which makes them sound less authentic. Over-thinking leads them to opt for phrases and expressions which may not make them sound genuine. This is a manifestation of them deliberating over what to say than allowing the free flow of speech.

Extroverts vs. introverts

It has also been found that women tend to use more pronouns than men and men on the other hand opt for longer words and articles. Apart from gender differences, introvertism and extrovertism also lead to a varying choice of words. A few years ago researchers at VU University, Amsterdam asked a group of respondents to analyze images of different social situations and explain them. Through this research, it was found that extroverts did not have concrete answers while introverts were more specific in their descriptions. If extroverts wrote that “this article is excellent” introverts were more specific when they said, “this article is informative.” Usually, extroverts are more likely to say “let’s get some food”, where introverts on the other hand would say, “perhaps we could get a sandwich”. Through this study, the researchers could conclude that extroverts are usually prepared to take greater risks with what they say than introverts who may be more discerning.

Are you persuasive or not?

Word choice also has a profound impact on how persuasive you are. Be it at business meetings, debates, or in getting kids to go to bed in time, the words you use will determine the outcome. A sociology professor at New York University studied the power of persuasiveness in the corporate setting. The first step he took was to closely analyze online discussions in a Fortune 500 company where employees were asked to brainstorm over solutions which would help address the global challenges the company was facing. It was found that short, more impactful, and thoughtful messages were shortlisted which also focused on core topics which were of importance to the company. Hasty responses that mimicked the way the top brass expressed themselves did not work. Those messages were not favored and soon discarded.

Novelty in music

In another research, text analysis and NLP were used in conjunction to determine why some songs in the same genre were more popular than the rest. It was found that songs with more unique lyrics were higher up in the charts. Even subtle variations in lyrics had a significant incremental impact on the commercial success of a song. And listeners appreciated ingenuity which rendered a new experience. It could be through variations and novelty in the lyrics, the tune or the beat. Interestingly, songs which led listeners to explore their emotional trajectory were more successful than the rest.

So next time you listen to a song, you know why you decide to hear it on loop. Or at the next meeting you attend, you know how to be heard. Effective listening can help, but what works wonders is a well-though-out and powerful speech. It’s words; it’s the choice of words that decides it all.