Sorry, this project has finished.

Please contact 2255266m@student.gla.ac.uk with any questions about this study.

Thank you for participating in the study investigating how people use and understand emojis when they communicate.

The first part of the study was asking questions that measure autistic-like traits, or whether you feel anxious in social situations. We did this to find out a little more about you and because some research indicates that people with these traits might find emojis useful when they communicate. After this, we gave you some scenarios of people communicating with emojis to understand how you might perceive them.

Debrief for Level 1 Psychology Students

The first questionnaire assessed the extent to which you possess symptoms typical of the autistic spectrum. The second questionnaire measures social distress symptoms to indicate your place on a standardised scale of social anxiety.

The second part of the study featured 30 hypothetical scenarios. The scenarios were either congruent (text paired with an appropriate emoji), incongruent (text paired with an inappropriate emoji) or neutral (no emoji). Your response time was measured to assess the time differences between each of the mentioned conditions. These were followed by statements where you indicated the extent to which you agreed.

In the final part of the study you were asked to answer four open-ended questions. The purpose of these questions was to gather in-depth knowledge of how your personal experience with emojis has impacted your social interactions online. The study will explore the measure of autistic traits and social anxiety traits to determine if they influence emoji perception.

If you have any questions, then do not hesitate to ask the researcher.

Thank you again for your participation.

Researcher: Rachel McMillan (2255266M@student.gla.ac.uk) Supervisor: Dr Chiara Horlin (chiara.horlin@glasgow.ac.uk)