Teachers and Expression of Emotions in Digital Communication

Abstract

This article introduces an empirical study of the way teachers express emotions during digital communication, both in typing and in video conferencing. The study involved 170 female and 20 male members of school and university teaching staff (mean age = 43.78 y.o). It relied on an authentic multiple-choice questionnaire, grid questions, and case tasks. The participants knew special online means of expressing emotions but seldom used them with students. At video conferences, they referred to the same methods of transmitting emotions as in real communication. The women and the school teachers were more emotional in the digital environment than the rest. The research revealed emotionally limited digital communication between teachers and students, which needs further research on how to develop the lacking competencies.