Researchers from Stanford Engineering once introduced a simple cuff in the journal IEEE Transactions on Haptics, designed to remotely transmit information about basic emotions of the speaker through touch, similar to visual emoticons of happiness or sadness. Equipped with actuators that stimulate the user's forearm, this cuff could deliver "haptic emojis," as termed by its creators.

Stanford's research was driven by the idea to create a device capable of conveying emotional content through simulated touch, usable in various contexts from gaming consoles to telemedicine.

University College London and Australia's Cairnmillar Institute decided to explore the potential of these haptic cuffs in social media interactions. Their study, published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE, demonstrated that integrating "digital touch" and "tactile emojis" significantly enhances feelings of support and approval, outperforming the sharing of visual emojis like hearts or thumbs up.

According to the researchers, this suggests that physical touch can convey meaning without additional verbal communication, even with strangers. However, the best results come from feedback combining visual and tactile emojis. Researchers also suggest that touch could provide additional context to visual emojis, which can sometimes be misinterpreted.

They emphasize the importance of the type of touch as well. Specifically, touch delivered at a speed that activates the C-tactile nerve system, responsible for generating positive emotions associated with touch or hugs, leads people to experience more favorable responses than any other type of touch.BUG.hr

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