The Power of Punctuation in Text Messages
Receiving a message from your boss saying “Come and see me” is never reassuring. But when it’s written as “Come. See. Me.” – the pressure goes up several notches: the tone changes immediately, and it takes on a sense of urgency that’s almost authoritarian.
The Study
An American study published in Frontiers in Psychology reveals that the use of extra full stops and other punctuation strongly influences the perception of emotions in a text message. Led by psychologist Celia Klin, a research team from the Binghamton University, State University of New York, investigated how certain punctuation structures influence the emotional interpretation of text messages.
Textisms: The New Language of Emotion
The researchers explained that, unlike a face-to-face conversation where voice, expressions, and body language help to adjust tone, text messages lack these cues. To compensate, users resort to “textisms” – graphic variations and spelling changes that convey emotional nuances. These textisms play a similar role to pauses in an oral conversation, conveying emotions such as exasperation, e.g. “No. Just. Stop.”
The Findings
The study found that the use of extra full stops and other punctuation structures amplifies the emotional intensity of a message. In the case of both structures studied, the texts were perceived as conveying a stronger sense of emotion and intensity. The researchers asked students to rate how disgusted or frustrated they believed the person who sent the message to be, and the results showed that the texts were perceived as amplifying the emotional intensity of the message.
Conclusion
The study highlights the subtleties of written communication in the digital age. While it mainly concerns messages conveying negative emotions, further research is needed to determine whether the phenomenon is also observed in more formal writing or with positive emotions. One thing is certain, though: punctuation in text messages is almost never neutral!
FAQs
Q: What is the purpose of the study?
A: The study aimed to investigate how certain punctuation structures influence the emotional interpretation of text messages.
Q: What were the findings of the study?
A: The study found that the use of extra full stops and other punctuation structures amplifies the emotional intensity of a message.
Q: What is the significance of the study?
A: The study highlights the subtleties of written communication in the digital age and the importance of considering the emotional impact of punctuation in text messages.