Because Snapchat allows users to send pictures along with text
(i.e., drawn or typed), many participants reported that it allowed for
better understanding of the emotional context of the conversation.
Max (21) remarked:
I think Snapchat is fun to use because instead of just sending a
text that says, “just got out of class” you can send a picture of
yourself looking absolutely miserable, so they knowwhat you're
feeling. It's just kind of being able to see somebody else. That's
how I kind of read people, I see them and I can see their body
language or faces of people. So you can actually connect what
they're saying with how they actually look.
Young adults revealed that they used this hybrid text-image
communication in their relationships when they were bored,
needed to convey a quick message, or as tool to make plans