EMOJIS AS NONVERBAL CUES IN ONLINE COMMUNICATION: PERSPECTIVES ON CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND MISUNDERSTANDING PREVENTION

Abstract

The study explores the role of emojis as nonverbal cues in conflict resolution and misunderstanding prevention in online communication on Reddit as indicators of speech aggression. Employing a mixed-methods approach and conducting both quantitative and qualitative analyses, the research investigates the frequency and patterns of emoji use in conflict and non-conflict threads, as well as their impact on conversation tone and outcomes. Findings reveal that positive emotion emojis, gesture emojis, and sarcasm/humor/irony emojis are most commonly used to manage challenging interactions and prevent misunderstandings. The study demonstrates that emoji use is more frequent in conflict threads compared to non-conflict threads, indicating the vital role emojis play in managing difficult interactions. Moreover, the results show that the use of emojis is associated with a higher likelihood of de-escalation, clarification of misunderstandings, and better conversation outcomes. In addition to supporting existing theoretical frameworks, such as Social Information Processing Theory and Media Richness Theory, the study provides practical insights into effective communication strategies and the design of digital spaces that facilitate healthier interpersonal communication. The findings have implications for online communication, suggesting that the strategic use of emojis can help humanize interactions, promote empathy, mitigate speech aggression and ultimately lead to mutual understanding and conflict resolution.