A study carried out by Andrea García Montes, PhD student in Applied Linguistics at the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV), has analyzed the use of emojis and their impact in a context of criminal and deceptive relationships. Specifically, the analysis has focused on the use made of emojis by cyber-sexual harassers of minors (groomers).
In a sample of 70 conversations provided by the Secretary of State for Security, the study confirms that cyberbullies use these more graphic elements more than victims. Among the 20 emojis most used by these sexual cyberharassers, the one with the heart –it is the most frequent (25%)– followed by the yellow face with two hearts as eyes (10%). Some with a more suggestive meaning also appear among these 20 pictograms, such as the emoji of a face smiling with superiority (4%) or that of a small flame of fire (3%).
“With the use of these emojis, the adult intends to create and develop a relationship, whether friendly or romantic, with his victim. Some studies indicate, in fact, that the use of emojis such as the smiley face or the heart are the best choice for this purpose and the cybersex harassers of minors are aware of this perception”, explains Andrea García Montes.
The study also concludes that the use of these emojis gives rise to the idea that, in a context of cybersexual harassment of minors, adults use them to introduce sexual themes in an implicit or mischievous way to deceive or confuse minors.
“The use of emojis contributes to the web of lies that the aggressors weave to achieve their criminal ends, whether they are compromising photos or videos of the minor or physically meeting up to have sexual relations,” says Andrea García Montes.
The work, directed by the UPV professor Carmen Pérez Sabater, also analyzes the context of appearance of these emojis. The results show that the pictograms used by adults appear in most cases together with affectionate names such as baby or heaven “in order to intensify that deceptive feeling that is developing between them,” adds Pérez Sabater.
The study, which is part of the Stoponsexgroom project, funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation, was presented last July at the 18th International Pragmatics Conference held in Brussels (Belgium).
