Email tension

According to a 2005 article in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, email users ‘hear’ emotional overtones when writing emails, which seem obvious to the sender, but become difficult to sense by the recipient.

When we talk, the brain picks up hints and emotional cues that help us manage interactions, by adapting our tone or approach to the conversation. As a result, the risk of unintended conflict or misunderstanding can be minimised. This strength is diluted when using email because our brain is limited to interpreting only what is presented on the screen.

Kirstin Byron, an assistant professor of management at Syracuse University in New York, goes even further by commenting that email users have a tendency to misinterpret positive messages as more neutral, and neutral emails as more negative than the sender actually intended.

Familiarity between sender and receiver helps, according to Joseph Walther, a professor of communication at Michigan State University. Interactions with friends and family are often much easier to manage, online or off, because we are more aware of differences or peculiarities in those familiar to us. For example, if you know a friend is ‘short’ with his words, you are less likely to take offence to an abruptly constructed email.

Interestingly, the act of picking up the phone or talking face to face provides a two-fold benefit. First, in difficult or challenging circumstances - where there is increased potential for conflict - a more personal interaction could help manage the conversation and minimise misunderstanding. Second, following on from the first, focussing more time on personal interactions can help forge better relationships between you and your recipients. Which, as illustrated, helps improve your ability to identify and interpret the subtle tones and emotions lost in email communications.