So we were chatting to someone the other day, we’ll call her *Jane, and she said, ‘I met a lovely guy on Lovestruck but he puts emojis on everything. Dump or keep?” We did our very own ‘shocked emoji face’ and then it got us thinking. The world loves an emoji, but do daters? Does it help or hinder being able to communicate this way? And, is it somehow more acceptable for women to use them than guys? Or is any emotional communication from the opposite sex to be encouraged…? 😉
Emojis were never intended for adults, they were first created for teenagers in Japan in the 1990’s as a quicker way to message. They’ve now infiltrated all social media channels and are multiplying fast with 470 million ‘tears of joy’ emojis floating about daily (though with all that’s happening in the world that’s kinda nice to hear). They’re friendly and harmless, aren’t they? They instantly lighten the tone and we need that in dating, don’t we?
OK, how many times have you read an message and felt unable to judge the tone without those ‘xx’s’ 😉 or’ LOL’s’? Girl’s on the whole are far better at expressing themselves with various symbols, even on work emails, but guys? They can be harder to read. A nice little emoji tagged onto a message from a date is kind of reassuring, non? Dr Helen Fisher who conducted a study for The University of Cambridge Computer Lab suggests ’emoji users are still seeking to communicate our emotions in this digital world.’ Perhaps anyone who struggles to put how they feel into in words will find the cute little emojis a good dating companion! Does it matter if we communicate with symbols not words, digitally? They still require some thought do they not? Or are the emotions we experience in dating and love too serious for emojis?
Jane thinks so. “It’s another way of being lazy when communicating.” She told us, “I’d rather they tell me in words how they feel where emotions are involved, not hide behind a silly face. I can’t take a fella seriously when he’s sending me these and yes, I suppose I do find them childish. This guy was also into using emojis to create whole sentences. I guess he thought it was fun but please! Not for dating!” 🙁
Are emojis a way of hiding behind our true feelings or intentions? Used as ‘sweetners’ for less pleasant messages ie: ‘Sorry, I don’t want a second date’ tagged with a smirk face. Or is it a good thing we’re keen to place any sort of emotion within our messages? Whatever you feel about emojis, they’re here to stay with 37 new faces/symbols planned for this year. Perhaps dating sites should have their very own emojis? What do you reckon: Not my type/bad breath/nothing like profile pic/amazing date/dumped/love to see you again…
Do you love emojis? Are they helpful in dating? Tell us (with emojis) @Lovestruck
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