The Capacity to Delineate and Interpret Emotion in Text Messages

Research indicates that emotion is not easily expressed or interpreted between senders and receivers who communicate through computer mediated communication methods such as text messaging. This fast paced, inexpensive and technologically advanced communication tool of text messaging has become a socially acceptable and valid form of communication in the twenty first century in many populations, cultures, and regions. Twenty pairs of female friends’ abilities to delineate and interpret accurately the four emotions of: joy, anger, sadness, and guilt in eight different text message scenarios were investigated. The results determined that although the accuracy rate of the sender expressing an emotion and the receiver correctly interpreting the emotion was greater than chance, the accuracy rate was also below one hundred percent. Furthermore, a positive relationship was revealed between the sender’s confidence and the receiver’s accuracy rate of interpreting angry text messages