A survey conducted by dating website Match.com found that people who use emojis frequently are probably the same people who think about sex numerous times during the day. Even a harmless food emoji can be used to represent sex or body parts.
Of the 5,000 survey participants, 36 to 40 percent who use more than one emoji in a single conversation also have sex on their minds several times a day. People who used emojis the least were those who never think about sex, as well as those who reported thinking about sex once a day.
"Here we have a new technology that absolutely jeopardizes your ability to express your emotion... there is no more subtle inflection of the voice ... and so we have created another way to express emotions and that is the emoji," said lead researcher Dr. Helen Fisher.
The Seductive Powers Of Emojis
In 2014, Match.com study revealed that more than half of the survey participants use the "wink" emoji when flirting. The "smiley" emoji, often used as a courtship aid, was the second most popular emoji.
The previous study also showed that 54 percent of the single participants who use emojis engage in more sex compared to the 31 percent who simply rely on text.
"Emoji users don't just have more sex, they go on more dates and they are two times more likely to get married," said Fisher added that emojis bring personality to conversations.
When it comes to sexually explicit emojis on Twitter, the "eggplant" emojis were shown to be used more frequently than the "banana" ones.
DrEd.com, a medical consultation and prescription website in the UK, analyzed more than 9 million tweets to determine the most sexually explicit emoji combinations widespread in Europe and the U.S. It found that the "smiley with heart eyes" is the most popular emoji. This romantic emoji is not too sexual, but when it comes to naughty emojis, the "eggplant" emoji tops the survey.
In Europe, though, the "banana" emoji is more popular on Twitter. In the U.S., people use the "eggplant" emoji more when flirting. Interestingly, in both Europe and the U.S., women like to use the "banana" emoji while men prefer the thicker "eggplant" emoji.
Photo: Intel Free Press | Flickr
