Adobe “Future of Creativity” Study: Emoji Aid Inclusivity; Empower Creative Self-Expression

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Today, Adobe (Nasdaq:ADBE) released its U.S. Emoji Trend Report, part of Adobe’s “Future of Creativity” Study, looking at the vital role and impact of emoji in digital communication. The report finds that 91% of U.S. emoji users agree emoji make it easier to express themselves and 71% agree inclusive emoji can help spark positive conversations about cultural and social issues. The majority of U.S. emoji users agree we should strive for more inclusive emoji representation (83%), which is in line with the release of Unicode 15.0, which will introduce new emoji including the maracas, flute, khanda, hair pick, pink heart and folding hand fan.

“Emoji have become a favorite form of creative self-expression for people everywhere,” said Kamile Demir, computer scientist at Adobe and Adobe representative on the Unicode Emoji Subcommittee. “As a member of the Unicode Consortium, we recognize the potential for emoji to promote inclusivity, spark cultural conversations and even positively impact mental health.”

Among the report’s additional findings: emoji don’t always mean what users think they do and are always changing; emoji have become a hallmark of American dating culture; and emoji use at work improves efficiency, boosts creativity and builds stronger relationships. There is a gulf in how users view emoji across different states.

“As a visual form of communication, emoji help fill the emotional gaps when representing ourselves online and help us communicate our personal identities, thoughts and feelings in ways words often cannot,” said Paul D. Hunt, typeface designer and font developer at Adobe. “With new emoji-themed templates in Adobe Express and support for emoji in Photoshop and IIlustrator creators can express themselves across language barriers and cultures.”

The report explored when, why and how Americans are using emoji to advance self-expression and identity; diversity, equity and inclusion; dating and relationships; workplace communications and more. This fun, fast and friendly form of digital communication has transformed the way Americans express themselves and continues to push the boundaries on how U.S. emoji users bridge conversations across age, race, culture and beyond.

Emoji users’ favorite emoji help them express joy, approval, love and sadness.

• 😂(#1), 👍(#2), ❤️(#3), 🤣(#4), 😢(#5) are U.S. emoji users’ top five favorite emoji, and U.S. emoji users’ least favorite emoji are 💩(#1), 😠(#2), 😳(#3).
• 🤣😂(#1), 🥰😘(#2), 😘❤️(#3) are U.S. emoji users’ top three favorite emoji pairings.

Emoji empower self-expression, make conversations fun and boost mental health.

• 60% of U.S. emoji users agree that using emoji in their communications has improved their mental health.
• 91% of U.S. emoji users agree that emoji make it easier for them to express themselves.
• 73% of U.S. emoji users think people who use emoji are friendlier, funnier and cooler than those who don’t.

Emoji foster more empathy, understanding and connection.

• 92% of U.S. emoji users agree that emoji can communicate across language barriers.
• A majority of U.S. emoji users (88%) report they are more likely to feel empathetic toward someone if they use an emoji.
• 71% of U.S. emoji users agree that emoji are an important communication tool for creating unity, respect and understanding of one another.

Emoji users continue to want more inclusive and representative emoji.

• 83% of U.S. emoji users agree that emoji should continue to strive for more inclusive representation of users.
• 75% of U.S. emoji users agree inclusive emoji can help raise awareness of diverse groups of people.
• 71% of U.S. emoji users agree inclusive emoji can help spark positive conversations about important cultural and societal issues.

Emoji don’t always mean what you think they do and are always changing.

• 🤠(#1), 🍒(#2), 🙃(#3) are U.S. emoji users’ most misunderstood emoji.
• Half of U.S. emoji users use emoji differently than their intended meaning (50%).
• Gen Z’ers are significantly more likely to agree they use emoji differently than intended meanings (74% Gen Z vs. 65% Millennial, 48% Gen X, 24% Boomer).

Emoji are the new love language and can make or break relationships.

• The top three make it or break it emoji when it comes to flirting or dating:
  • 😘(#1), 🥰(#2), 😍(#3) make you more likable.
  • 💩(#1), 😠(#2), 🍆(#3) make you less likable.
• 72% of U.S. emoji users use emoji in conversations with someone they’re interested in flirting with or dating.
• Two out of five Gen Z’ers (38%) would not pursue a serious or long-term relationship with someone who did not use emoji.

Emoji use at work improves efficiency, boosts creativity and builds stronger relationships.

• 71% of U.S. emoji users say they use emoji at work, and 53% of U.S. emoji users report that they’ve increased their emoji use at work in the last 12 months.
• Using emoji at work helps U.S. emoji users quickly share ideas (79%), makes team decision-making more efficient (62%) and reduces the need for meetings and calls (47%).
• 58% of U.S. emoji users agree that emoji usage at work boosts their creativity and 68% agree emoji helps build better relationships with new hires.

Emoji use will evolve and expand in new and interesting ways in the future.

• More than half of U.S. emoji users are willing to purchase an item using an emoji (57%) – with Gen Z’ers being the most willing (71%), followed by Millennials (67%).
• The top three products U.S. emoji users are willing to purchase with an emoji include takeout meals (#1), clothing (#2) and streaming services (#3).
• The majority of U.S. emoji users are open to creative emoji use, from confirming event attendance (68%) to sending and receiving payments (45%).

Emoji use differs state by state.

Adobe took a closer look at emoji users in California, Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas and found some surprising differences in how their emoji use differs when compared to U.S. emoji users at large:

• Texas emoji users use more emoji when flirting or dating than U.S. emoji users (67% of TX vs. 59% of U.S.).
• New York emoji users think people who use emoji are friendlier, funnier and cooler than those who don’t (77% of NY vs. 73% of U.S.).
• Florida emoji users agree inclusive emoji can help raise awareness of diverse groups of people (79% of FL vs. 75% of U.S.).
• Using emoji at work helps California emoji users quickly share ideas (79% of CA vs. 79% of U.S.), makes team decision-making more efficient (70% of CA vs. 62% of U.S.) and reduces the need for meetings and calls (55% of CA vs. 47% of U.S.).
• Illinois emoji users share emoji most often with their friends compared to the family or significant others (84% of IL vs. 80% of U.S.).

Adobe offers the most comprehensive portfolio of products and services across every creative category—including imaging, photography, design, video and 3D and immersive—unleashing creativity for all. Tools like Adobe Express, Fonts, Photoshop and Frame.io empower millions of creators around the world to express themselves every day.

The Future of Creativity: 2022 U.S. Emoji Trend Report can be found in full here.

About the “Future of Creativity”: 2022 U.S. Emoji Trend Report

Adobe’s Future of Creativity: 2022 U.S. Emoji Trend Report aims to understand the role and impact of emoji in digital communication. The report examines the importance of emoji across a variety of areas such as self-expression and identity; diversity, equity and inclusion; dating and relationships; workplace communications and more. It is part of Adobe’s Future of Creativity research series, which explores how creativity is changing around the world.

Methodology

Adobe’s Future of Creativity: 2022 U.S. Emoji Trend Report was conducted in March – April 2022 with 5,000 frequent emoji users across the U.S. and an oversample of 500 frequent emoji users per state in five states, including California, Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas. The survey was conducted to understand the role and impact of emoji in digital communication. The sample is a representative recruit of the U.S. with a ±1.4% margin of error at the 95% confidence level.

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Denise Styerwalt
Adobe
dstyerwa@adobe.com