1. Abstract
The Influence of Emoticons on Personality Perception Results
This study examined the effects that emoticons have on the perceptions •A linear regression model was used to predict which of our participants
of conversational partners. Participants took part in a guided Lauren DeIntinis, Faith Govan and Brian McElveney use emoticons and what they use them for.
conversation via Google Chat where they discussed a current event Faculty Advisor: Dawn Blasko • By using the participants personality traits, agreeableness,
article they read prior to chatting. Emoticons were randomly assigned to Penn State Erie, The Behrend College extraversion, and emotional stability, being the most impactful on
each participant. There were four conditions of emoticon use: positive,
negative, wink, or no emoticon. Following their participation in the
Presented at the Western Pennsylvania Undergraduate Psychology Conference Contact: btm5084@psu.edu the results, we were able to explain 11.6% of the variance of
those who use emoticons in everyday use.
conversation, participants rated their conversational partner on the Big 5
personality scale. We hypothesized that the type of emoticon used will (R2 = .12, F = 3.21, p = .03)
influence the chat partner’s perceived personality. Data were analyzed
using a series of one-way ANOVAs on emoticon condition and perceived • By using the participants personality traits, agreeableness,
personality of sender based on the Big 5 Personality traits (Openness, Participants Procedure Materials conscientiousness, and emotional stability, being the most
Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Emotional impactful on the results, we were able to explain 20% of the
Stability). The results show us that the chat partner was perceived as variance of those who use emoticons to express humor.
•IRB Approval •Participant Questionnaire
more agreeable when they used the positive emoticon, and less
• Demographics (R2 = .20, F = 6.09, p = .001)
emotionally stable when the wink emoticon was used.
• Use of CMC
•77 Participants • Mood
• Opinion of Behrend as Dry Campus
• 35 Males, 42 Females
• 18-39 years old, M=19 years old •Big Five Personality Questionnaire Discussion
(Saucier, 1994) •Less emotionally stable and the more agreeable, more likely to use
emoticons.
•Research Participation Pool •Perception Questionnaire
• Penn State Behrend, Erie, PA • Post Mood •Chat partners are seen as more agreeable when they pair optimistic
messages with positive emoticons
• SONA System • Post Opinion of Behrend of Dry • (Luor, Wu, Lu, and Tao, 2010)
Campus
•Ethical Guidelines with Informed • Likeability of Chat Partner •Participant’s perceived extraversion rating higher when a wink emoticon
Consent • Enjoyment of Conversation and support statement of campus going dry was used
• Persuasiveness of Partner • Participants may have perceived the wink as a form of sarcasm
• Personal use of emoticons (Walther and D’Addario, 2001)
.
Electronic Communication Pre/Post Mood Ratings X Emoticon Type Sex X Pre/Post Opinion X Emoticon Type
•87% of teens engage in some form of electronic communication (Pew
Internet Project, 2008)
•43% of teenagers now say texting is the number one reason they get a
cell phone (Nielson, 2010)
•Voice usage has decreased by 14% among teens and is decreasing in
all age groups under 55 (Nielson, 2010)
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•Who uses emoticons and how are they used? doi: 10.1177/089443930101900307.
•How do emoticons affect a person’s mood?
•How do emoticons influence a person’s opinion of a topic? Acknowledgements
•How do emoticons influence a person’s perception of their conversation We would like to thank our faculty advisor, Dr. Dawn Blasko, for her
partner? There was a significant interaction found between emoticon use and the Big Five trait, Chat variable analysis: Displays the frequencies of coded variables from the chat continued support and guidance throughout the duration of the study. We
Agreeableness, F (3, 73) = 2.94, p = .04. This shows that participants rated their chat analysis based on the emoticon each participant was assigned. would also like to thank Dr. Robert Light, the senior associate dean of the
partner highest on agreeableness when they received a positive emoticon.
•Can emoticons in a received message affect their chat partner’s Penn State Behrend Research Office, for supporting this study with a
response? research grant.