For those who use emoji in correspondence, dates often end “successfully”

American psychologists have found that the use of emojis and emoticons in correspondence can ensure success in communicating with a potential romantic partner.

Recent studies show that the visual system of the human brain responds to emoji and to people’s faces in a similar way, that is, apparently, it is really possible to recognize human (or other) features in them and consider them a valid marker for expressing emotions. Accordingly, emojis in correspondence can help express and recognize the intentions and purpose of communication – for example, possible romantic relationships.

To understand this in more detail, scientists decided under the leadership of Amanda Gesselman from Indiana University in Bloomington.

To do this, they conducted two studies in the form of a survey. The first was attended by 5327 Americans who provided their demographic data (gender, age, sexual orientation and ethnicity), and also answered questions about how often they use emojis and emoticons in correspondence and what is the meaning they put into them using When communicating with a potential romantic partner.

In particular, among the options for answering the question of motivation were statements like “it’s easier for me to express feelings” and “it’s easier than writing whole sentences”. In addition, participants reported the number of first dates in the past year and the frequency of sexual contacts during the same period.

Scientists have found that approximately 30 percent of the participants in the sample use emojis and emoticons in correspondence with potential romantic partners in order to better express themselves and their own intentions. In addition, scientists associated the use of emotions in correspondence (p <0.001) with more first dates and sexual contacts, taking into account gender and age as side variables.

With the help of the second study, the scientists decided to reproduce the results, as well as to check how the use of emojis and emoticons is associated with success in romantic relationships after the first date, and also take into account other variables: in particular, how often participants generally use instant messengers.

The second survey was attended by 275 people who answered the same questions as the participants of the first study, and in addition they also asked how many participants had second dates. Scientists also asked for details about the last first date: in particular, they were interested in whether the participants communicated with their potential partners in correspondence and whether they used emojis, as well as how the date went.

Unlike the results of the first study, scientists were not able to find a statistically significant (p = 0.44) relationship between the frequency of use of emoji and the number of first dates. At the same time, the frequency of use of emoji correlated with the number of second dates, the number of sexual partners and the number of sexual contacts. In addition, frequent use of emoji positively correlated (p <0.001) with a kiss and sex after the first date, as well as the beginning of a romantic relationship.

Research, however, has important limitations. In particular, scientists did not specify among the participants which particular emojis they use, and there was also no data on how exactly the emojis were interpreted by the interlocutors of the survey participants.

So far, the authors of the work have pointed out that the use of emoji and emoticons as non-verbal means in communication during correspondence, apparently, can potentially ensure success in building romantic relationships, and is also an important part of social communication in the modern world.