More than 90 per cent of online populations now incorporate emojis and emoticons into their texts and emails, and researchers are wondering what their use of can unveil about human behaviour.
Early studies have found that these typographic displays can aid in cross-cultural communication and provide insights into user personalities, information that could be of interest to disciplines ranging from linguistics to marketing.
Researchers believe that emojis and emoticons are similarly used as visual aids to clarify and understand a message.
"We mostly use emojis like gestures, as a way of enhancing emotional expressions," said Linda Kaye, a cyberpsychologist at Edge Hill University in the UK.
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"There are a lot of idiosyncrasies in how we gesture, and emojis are similar to that, especially because of the discrepancies as to how and why we use them," said Hill.
A 2014 survey of 1,000 people in the US showed only 54 per cent of emoticon users were in the age range of 18-34.
Communicating via smiley face may actually be more closely related to personality than age.
"If you look at personality traits, like agreeableness, how amenable you are to other people, it seems to be related to whether you use emojis or not," Kaye said.
Psychologists also want to use online data to understand how communicating via emojis and emoticons can provide insights into social inclusion.
"People are making judgements about us based on how we use emojis, and they're not necessarily accurate," Kaye said.
"What we need to be aware of is that those judgements might differ depending on where or with whom you're using those emojis, such as in the workplace or between family members," she said.
Researchers hope to understand how emojis might serve as the intersection between in-person and online interactions and how human nature can be reflected through digital media.
The study was published in the journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences.