The potential of using emoji instead of words when measuring emotions associated with food

Research shows that both emoji and word based questionnaires show information beyond liking measures alone. Prior research found that word based questionnaires were more discriminating than emoji when studying well liked products, suggesting their potential use with popular commercial products and for food product development. Based on limited evidence to date it is unclear if the emoji and word based questionnaires have a similar discriminative ability, although response format might have an impact. Another question is whether words or emoji show greater potential for more detailed evaluations with multiple related words. Emoji might have an advantage in cross cultural research where word translation is challenging. There are still relatively few studies that directly compare the two methods. Overall, we see the potential of using emoji in food-related emotion research and support the call of Jaeger, Vidal and Ares (2020) for more research on both word and emoji questionnaires.     

A frown emoji can be worth a thousand words: Perceptions of emoji use in text messages exchanged between romantic partners

Computer-mediated communication (CMC) can facilitate the expression of affection between romantic partners and promote relationship quality. Text messaging is nowadays an important means of expressing affection and to feel close to one’s partner. However, it is unclear if adding emoji to text messages influences perceptions about the relationship. In two experiments (combined N = 451), participants evaluated the relationship interest of a romantic partner, based on the messages exchanged. Study 1 compared positive and negative replies varying in emotional cues (without vs. text vs. emoji). Results showed that positive replies signaled the greatest interest, regardless of cue. In contrast, negative replies with (vs. without) cues signaled greater interest in the relationship and this was especially evident for messages with emoji. This benefit occurred because these messages were perceived as more positive (vs. negative messages without cue). Study 2 compared negative replies varying in the seriousness of the issue. Results showed that, for more serious replies, emotional text signaled greater interest by increasing message positivity. In contrast, emoji signaled less interest by increasing message negativity. Together, findings showed how CMC between romantic partners can benefit and be harmed by including emoji.     

融合表情符号与短文本的微博多维情感分类

表情符号已成为网络语言重要组成部分,是分析社交媒体情感的主要特征之一.目前分析社交媒体情感符号的方法多针对Emoji,对颜文字的情感倾向没有相应分析.为获取中文媒体的多维度情感并分析热点话题的群体情感走向,本文以微博为例提出一种新的融合表情符号与短文本的多维情感分类方法.在该框架中,采用深度学习模型分析文本与Emoji组合部分、颜文字部分,分别计算两部分的7种情感强度,挖掘各部分与情感标签的深层次关联,并设计计算模型来反映语句包含的多维情感属性,实现对语句多维情感强度的检测.实验选择NLPCC2014数据集和爬取的带有颜文字的微博数据集进行验证,实验证明当文本与Emoji组合、颜文字占比分别为0.6和0.4时情感分类效果最好,且含颜文字的语句情感分类性能指标始终高于不含颜文字的语句,这表明融合表情符号和短文本的形式有效提高了情感检测精度.该方法为研究群体情感趋势提供了更细粒度的分析,为中文社交媒体的情感分析提供了新思路.     

Children’s selection of emojis to express food-elicited emotions in varied eating contexts

Emojis were suggested for children to be used to measure food-elicited emotions. The present study was aimed to explore the appropriateness of emojis to describe pre-adolescents’ emotions elicited by foods recalled in relation to different evoked eating contexts and to explore related age- and gender differences. Fifty-five boys and forty-one girls aged 9–13 participated to the study. First, subjects were asked to recall, by means of an open-ended question, the foods they had in specific eating contexts: “Most liked food” and “Most disliked food”, “Breakfast”, “Dinner”, “Snack”, “Birthday” and “Novel food”. Then, they were asked to select the emojis appropriate to describe their feelings for the context-related foods by selecting from a list of 92 facial emojis (CATA method). Emojis selected by more than 20% of children in at least one eating context qualified as food-related. In total, 46 emojis resulted as appropriate to describe emotions in different eating contexts. Pre-adolescents used mainly positive emojis, except for the context “Most disliked food”, where mainly negative emojis were used. Most food-related emojis resulted from “Most liked food” and “Most disliked food”, but the context “Birthday” also added some context-specific emojis. The number of selected emojis varied across evoked eating contexts eliciting different foods. Age and gender significantly affected emoji selection across and within foods elicited by varied eating contexts, with girls and 9–11-year-old subjects selecting some emojis more frequently across all contexts, but also within contexts. The approach used in the present study has the potential to be used for the development of a food-related emotion measurement tool for pre-adolescents. Future research aimed at interpreting the meaning of facial emojis is needed and should consider age- and gender differences.     

Questionnaires should be the default method in food-related emotion research

This article is part of a virtual special issue (VSI) in Food Quality and Preference on emotion measurement with a particular focus on eating and drinking. We write in response to an invitation to comment on the opinion paper by Schouteten [FQAP, 2020, 104122] titled “Are questionnaires the best way to measure emotions for food products and beverages?” Schouteten concludes that questionnaires, overall, are better suited to this task. We agree. In fact, we go one step further and propose that questionnaires and explicit approaches, in general, can be regarded as the default method for accessing and measuring emotional experiences. They already enjoy widespread use, and we suggest they remain the status quo until stronger arguments emerge in favour of using implicit methods. With technological advances, arguments for more regularly obtaining both explicit and implicit measures of food-related emotions may strengthen, and questionnaires may not remain the default forever. Our commentary is structured around the three questions raised by Schouteten regarding emotion measurement: i) what do we want to measure? ii) how do we measure it? and iii) what is the added value of the measurement?     

Motives,frequency and attitudes toward emoji and emoticon use

Electronic Mediated Communication (EMC) has become highly prevalent in our daily lives. Many of the communication formats used in EMC are text-based (e.g., instant messaging), and users often include visual paralinguistic cues in their messages. In the current study, we examined the usage of two such cues – emoji and emoticons. Specifically, we compared self-reported frequency of use, as well as attitudes (6 bipolar items, e.g., “fun” vs. “boring”) and motives for their usage (9 motives, e.g., “express how I feel to others”). We also examined these indicators according to age and gender. Overall, participants (N?=?474, 72.6% women; M_age?=?30.71, SD?=?12.58) reported using emoji (vs. emoticons) more often, revealed more positive attitudes toward emoji usage, and identified more with motives to use them. Moreover, all the ratings were higher among younger (vs. older) participants. Results also showed that women reported to use emoji (but not emoticons) more often and expressed more positive attitudes toward their usage than men. However, these gender differences were particularly evident for younger participants. No gender differences were found for emoticons usage. These findings add to the emerging body of literature by showing the relevance of considering age and gender, and their interplay, when examining patterns of emoji and emoticons use.     

Who (and with whom) uses more emoji? Exploring individual,relational, and motivational characteristics driving emoji use

Emoji use, despite being pervasive in digital communication, is often dependent on individual characteristics (e.g., gender, age, personality), relational dimensions (e.g., intimacy with specific others), motives for using them (e.g., because emoji allow to better express emotions), and the context in which they are used (e.g., emoji use is considered more appropriate with closer interlocutors, such as friends). However, research has yet to examine if and how these variables associate with emoji use frequency when considered together. In a correlational study (N = 444), we explored the relative contribution of individual characteristics, perceived relatedness to others, and motives to explain the frequency of emoji use with different interlocutors. Hierarchical linear regressions showed that being younger, scoring higher on conscientiousness, and resorting to emoji for personal contact were correlates of emoji use frequency with closer interlocutors (e.g., family and friends). In contrast, being older, scoring lower on agreeableness, and perceiving more relational intimacy were correlates of emoji use frequency with more distant interlocutors (e.g., supervisors and doctors). Overall, results highlight the need to account for multiple variables at different levels to examine emoji use patterns in digital communication.     

Emoji面孔的轮廓形状对使用意愿的影响——以汉口水塔Emoji为例

目的 研究Emoji设计中面孔轮廓形状对人们使用意愿的影响,为武汉本地文化遗产活化提供理论支持与借鉴。方法 向被试者展示8个具有不同情绪内容和面孔轮廓形状的汉口水塔Emoji,通过问卷的形式分别对被试者的共情能力、感知情绪强度、使用意愿等进行测量。结果 验证了Emoji的面孔轮廓形状对人们感知情绪强度与使用意愿的影响。结论 对汉口水塔Emoji而言,相比倒三角形,人们对面孔轮廓形状为圆形的Emoji具有更强的使用意愿。其中,感知情绪强度在轮廓形状与使用意愿之间起到中介作用,而人们能从面孔轮廓形状与表情内容情绪一致的Emoji中感知到更强的情绪;个体的共情能力对情绪强度的感知具有显著的调节作用。以上研究给人们的启示是,在设计类似主题的Emoji时需考虑面孔轮廓形状对情绪表达和使用意愿的影响,避免产生歧义。