A Socio-cognitive Study On Emoticon Features In IM By Different Age Groups

As a quite popular multi-modal conversation phenomenon,emoticons provide a social context for non-face-to-face synchronous communication in instant messaging,which have already been a hot topic in the field of linguistics.Within the theoretical framework of Bandura’s triadic reciprocal causation,adopting multi-modal conversational analysis as the central tool for analysis,the present study investigated daily conversations in internet chat rooms by three age groups in instant messaging,namely,the teenager group,the youth group,and the middle-aged group.There were 125 participants in the teenager group,whose ages were between 13 years old and 17 years old.They were from two junior high school classes and one senior high school class.There were 97 participants in the youth group,whose ages were between 18 years old and 40 years old.They were from chat rooms of friends or classmates.There were 78 participants in the middle-aged group,whose ages were between 41 years old and 65 years old.They came from chat rooms of friends or classmates.All the data were collected from the chat rooms,where people can talk freely about any topics.In order to better explore emoticon features by different age groups,the amounts and percentages were conducted respectively.The present study found two classifications of emoticons :(1)in terms of image feature:(a)by the teenager group: Japanese kaomojis take the greatest percentage;(b)by the youth group: composite pictures and cartoons take the greatest percentage;(c)by the middle-aged group: graphic icons take the greatest percentage;(2)in terms of emotional expression:(a)by the teenager group: the dirty and exaggerated emoticons,the kuso and funny emoticons take the greatest percentage;(b)by the youth group: the lovely and acting moe emoticons take the greatest percentage;(c)by the middle-aged group: the serious and positive emoticons take the greatest percentage.The present study also found emoticon features:(a)by the teenager group: kitsch aesthetics of ugliness;kuso and playful spirits are very popular;“dirty” culture as a resistant andresolvable discourse;(b)by the youth group: coarse aesthetics;original designation is hot to deconstruct classics;characters are like script,which are funny or ironic;(c)by the middle-aged group: traditional oriental aesthetics,creating new political images,contents are normative and full of positive energy.In terms of the socio-cognitive causes of emoticons,(a)virtual personal causation is embodied in cognition and social environment: for the teenager group,in the social context of new century,liberalism makes aesthetics of ugliness at its best;for the youth group,in the social context of reform and opening up,creativity promotes the generation of aesthetics of ugliness;for the middle-aged group,in the social context of socialist construction,conservative attitudes make traditional oriental aesthetics inherit;(b)Virtual environmental causation is embodied in identity construction: teenagers construct peer identity;the youth group constructs social identity;the middle-aged people construct political identity;(c)Virtual behavior causation is embodied in emotion catharsis: for the teenager group,they release pressure to meet the self-respect demand;for the youth group,they express dissatisfaction to meet the self-realization;for the middle-aged group,they are satisfied the present status to spread positive energy.In terms of the socio-cognitive effects of emoticons(a)effects on personal causation are embodied in cognition: values are affected in the teenager group;creativity is enhanced in the youth group;the middle-aged group is prone to attitudes towards entertainment;(b)effects on environmental causation are embodied in interpersonal relationships: effects on desalting relationships by the teenager group;effects on developing superficial relationships by the youth group;effects on extending relationships the middle-aged group;(c)effects on behavior causation are embodied in constructing a new discourse model: effects on the inheritance of language by the teenager group;effects on creation of emoticons discourse by the youth group;effects on political persuasive discourse by the middle-aged group.This study concludes that exploration of emoticon features in IM by different age groups makes contribution to positive development of network subculture,leading to thecorrect direction of heritance and development of Chinese and helping to form correct cognition and creates a harmonious social environment.