Satellite TV providers' customer service agents get cursed at the most by angry clients, according to a study by Marchex that examined rates of cursing across 20 service industries that rely on consumer phone calls for sales.

Among customers calling their satellite TV provider, one in 82 cursed out the unfortunate customer service agent on the other end. The proportion was almost as bad for contractors -- one in 90 callers cursed.

The study was based on data drawn by Marchex Call Analytics from more than 1.2 million consumer calls placed to U.S. businesses from March 2012 to November 2013.

Veterinary clinics and senior living facilities had customers who were the least likely to curse out customer service. Only about one in every 2,600 customers cursed at veterinary clinics’ customer service agents, while only one in 1,700 customers did so for senior living facilities. Maybe pets and old folks bring out the best in people.

The study also found that a fair amount of cursing occurs while consumers are on hold. But the figures here represent only profanity while the customer was actually on the line with an agent. Here’s the data:

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Service industries, by how much customers curse at customer service agents. IBTimes/Lisa Mahapatra
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