A little 😀 goes a long way

Examining the limits of immediacy cues on students’ perceptions of instructor credibility, immediacy, liking, and clarity

Bibliographic Data

ID21740642
AuthorsKyle R Vareberg (0000-0001-8921-3229, Northeastern State University, corresponding author), David Westerman (0000-0001-9550-0304, North Dakota State University)
Year2023
Volume23
Issue4
Pages312-329
Publication date2023-10-02
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueReview of Communication (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1535-8593 • E-ISSN: 1535-8593
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/15358593.2023.2197974
OpenAlexW4382073108
LanguageEN
Citations received9

This paper examines how textisms, defined as cues that facilitate interaction in text-dominant communication (e.g., emojis), as a type of immediacy cue, may increase perceived immediacy in instructor–student mediated out-of-class communication (e.g., a welcome email). Using an experiment manipulating cue number and placement and instructor gender, we examined how emojis impacted participants’ (N = 443) impressions of instructors’ closeness, credibility, liking, and clarity. Results suggest that using emojis in instructor–student communication is best done sparingly and strategically, but if done this way, emojis can be potentially useful. These findings have implications for current instructors; limitations and future directions are also discussed

CLARITY ¡ Closeness ¡ Credibility ¡ Epistemology ¡ Immediacy ¡ Perception ¡ Communication in Education and Healthcare ¡ Computer Science ¡ Digital Communication and Language ¡ Discourse Analysis in Language Studies ¡ Psychology ¡ Social Psychology

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