Approximate reading time: 8 minutes

Let’s revisit our opening story about Praveen losing during his video game. You are invited to try this experiment. Step #1: reread the story reprinted below. Step #2: reread the same story again, but this time with emojis included. Step #3: Observe how your experience of the story alters with the addition of emojis. Note any physical and emotional changes you experience. Based on your observations, do you believe that emojis function similarly to facial expressions in conveying and influencing emotions? Here are the stories for the three steps of this experiment:

Step #1: Read Praveen’s Story Without Emojis

Praveen is an avid gamer. He’s been passionate about video games since his early teens and often uses them as a way to unwind after a long day at university. One evening, after a particularly challenging day, Praveen decided to play his favourite multiplayer online game.

• Emotions: During a particularly intense match, an opponent’s unexpected move led to Praveen’s character being defeated. This sudden event triggered a rush of adrenaline in Praveen, causing his heart rate to spike and his palms to sweat. This immediate and intense physiological reaction to the in-game event is his emotion.
• Feelings (a.k.a. “The feels”): After the initial shock of the unexpected move, Praveen recognized and labeled his physiological emotion. He thought, “I can’t believe that just happened! I’m so frustrated!” This conscious awareness and interpretation of his physiological state is his feeling. It’s like he’s thinking, “This game always gives me the feels, especially during moments like this!”.
• Moods: As the evening progressed and even after he stopped playing, Praveen found himself a bit down. This wasn’t just about his earlier in-game loss but was a more prolonged and subtle state affecting his behaviour and interactions. This general sense of melancholy, not as intense as his earlier emotion but lingering, is his mood.
• Meta-moods: Before going to bed, Praveen reflected on his gaming experience and his subsequent mood. He journaled, “Today’s game was intense. I felt such a rush during that match, but afterward, I felt a bit down. It’s interesting how a game can affect my mood for hours. I wonder why I let it get to me so much?” This introspection about his own emotional state, his reflection on his mood, is his meta-mood.
• Emodiversity: The following evening, Praveen’s gaming was marked by a spectrum of emotions. His new victorious game strategy made him feel proud; mentoring a novice made him feel warmth; and getting praised by an expert gamer made him feel encouraged. Even when Praveen lost another game, his frustration was now mixed with amusement. This emodiversity, Praveen noted, made his play more fulfilling. He journaled, “Today’s session was a roller coaster of emotions, making me feel more alive and less knocked down by the lows.”

In Praveen’s gaming adventure, we see the interplay of emotions, feelings, moods, meta-moods, and emodiversity. Emotions are the immediate reactions, feelings are the stories we tell ourselves about these reactions, moods are the lingering states that colour our world, meta-moods are our reflections on these experiences, and emodiversity is our wide, colourful range of emotions. Through understanding and introspection, Praveen, like all of us, can navigate the complex and nuanced emotional landscape and deepen his self-awareness.

Step #2: Reread Praveen’s Story With Emojis

Praveen is an avid gamer. He’s been passionate about video games since his early teens and often uses them as a way to unwind after a long day at university. One evening, after a particularly challenging day, Praveen decided to play his favourite multiplayer online game.

• Emotions: During a particularly intense match, an opponent’s unexpected move led to Praveen’s character being defeated 😔. This sudden event triggered a rush of adrenaline in Praveen, causing his heart rate to spike and his palms to sweat 😰. This immediate and intense physiological reaction to the in-game event is his emotion.
• Feelings (a.k.a. “The feels”): After the initial shock 😲 of the unexpected move, Praveen recognized and labeled his physiological emotion. He thought, “I can’t believe that just happened! I’m so frustrated!” 😤 This conscious awareness and interpretation of his physiological state is his feeling. It’s akin to him thinking, “This game always gives me the feels 🥺, especially during moments like this!”
• Moods: As the evening progressed and even after he stopped playing, Praveen found himself a bit down 😞. This wasn’t just about his earlier in-game loss but was a more prolonged and subtle state affecting his behaviour and interactions. This general sense of melancholy, not as intense as his earlier emotion but lingering, is his mood.
• Meta-moods: Before going to bed, Praveen reflected on his gaming experience and his subsequent mood. He journaled, “Today’s game was intense. I felt such a rush during that match 😄, but afterward, I felt a bit down 😔. It’s interesting how a game can affect my mood for hours. I wonder why I let it get to me so much?” This introspection about his own emotional state, his reflection on his mood, is his meta-mood.
• Emodiversity: The following evening, Praveen’s gaming was marked by a spectrum of emotions. His new victorious game strategy made him feel proud; mentoring a novice made him feel warmth 🥰; and getting praised by an expert gamer made him feel encouraged 🤗. Even when Praveen lost another game, his frustration 😤 was now mixed with amusement 😄. This emodiversity, Praveen noted, made his play more fulfilling. He journaled, “Today’s session was a roller coaster of emotions, making me feel more alive and less knocked down by the lows.”

In Praveen’s gaming adventure, we see the interaction of emotions, feelings, moods, meta-moods, and emodiversity. Emotions are the immediate reactions, feelings are the stories we tell ourselves about these reactions, moods are the lingering states that colour our world, meta-moods are our reflections on these experiences, and emodiversity is our wide, colourful range of emotions. Through understanding 🧠 and introspection 🕵️‍♂️, Praveen, like all of us, can navigate the complex and nuanced emotional landscape and deepen his self-awareness 🌟.

Step #3: Write Down Your Observations

Was your experience of the story any different with added emojis? Why or why not? Based on your observations only, do you believe that emojis function similarly to facial expressions in displaying and shaping your emotions?