1. Running Head: UNCERTAINTY IN TEXT MESSAGES 1
Uncertainty in Text Messages: Text messages…clear and concise or confusing and
ambiguous?
Robert Moore
July 17, 2016
CMST 4899: Senior Project

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Abstract
This paper analyzes communication tendencies and interpretation via text
messages. It is not limited to text messages sent and received on mobile devices using
a direct phone number, but also through social media and other text messaging
platforms. Texting has become the leading way for the younger generation to
communicate with each other, but he tendencies of these messages can sometimes be
lost in translation. The receiver’s interpretation of a text is not always its sender’s
intention and this can be problematic when trying to effectively communicate. The
relationship between both sender and receiver plays a big part in understanding the
exchanging of information via text messages between them. The gender of the text
messaging participants also plays a role in text message comprehension. People text
for various reasons like sharing information, planning, and sometimes even conversing
without a general purpose.
Keywords: texting, younger generation, social media platform, gender, interpretation

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Uncertainty in Text Messages: Text messages…clear and concise or confusing and
ambiguous?
Introduction
Today, it’s all about the text message! Text messages are the current leading
way for many people to communicate (Park, Lee, & Chung, 2015). Consistently over
the last 10 years, Americans have used texting more than phone calls as a main
medium of communicating with each other (Harrison & Gilmore, 2012). Text messaging
has become the normal form of communication amongst young people, but
communicating via text message can cause uncertainty. Are texts quick, clear, and
concise means of communication information, or are they confusing, misunderstood,
and ambiguous? Confusion can stem from misspelled words or lack of real life, face to
face verbal inflections, facial expressions, or body language to name a few. This
research aims to help understand why texting has become the preferred method of
communication and why text messages may cause uncertainty within the receiver. “On
average, young people send and receive over 3,000 text messages a month” (Harrison
& Gilmore, 2012). Texting can be useful for keeping in constant contact with someone,
especially during situations when either party cannot verbally communicate. With the
younger generation being the largest group of texters (Park, Lee, & Chung, 2015), that
number will increase over time with the average age of the smart phone user getting
younger. Texting can be helpful to people who experience anxiety in face to face and
or group situations by giving them a platform to effectively communicate or self-disclose
in a way they regularly could not (Kingsbury & Coplan, 2015). Communicating via text

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message can leave a lot of room for open interpretation with the intention of the
message being missed completely.
Literature Review
Text Messages: The norm form of communication for the younger generation
“Increasingly young adults’ social interactions are taking place via computer-
mediated communication (CMC)” (Kingsbury & Coplan, 2015). Text messaging has
become the leading way for young people to communicate with each other (Crosswhite,
Rice, & Asay, 2013), with members of the younger generation sending and receiving,
on average, over 50 text messages a day, while some are texting in excess of 3,000
text messages a month (Harrison & Gilmore, 2012). Harrison & Gilmore (2012) state
that In May of 2013, 81% of cellphone owners reported sending or receiving text
messages, and this proportion reached up to 94-97% for younger adults aged between
18-49 (Park, Lee, & Chung, 2015). In 2011, around 2.3 trillion texts were exchanged in
just the U.S., which is a 12% increase in texting since 2010 (Crosswhite, Rice, & Asay,
2013). Over the past 10 years, texting has become a language of its very own.
(Harrison & Gilmore, 2012). So many people in the U.S., especially the younger
generation, text messaging has become an imperative tool in day to day communication
(Harrison & Gilmore, 2012). Texting has also become one of the most imperative
mediums for maintaining relationships of all kinds over the more recent years (Park,
Lee, & Chung, 2015). In addition to the relevance of text messaging and its mass
number of regular users, communicating via text message can cause uncertainty or
confusion.

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Uncertainty
Uncertainty can be defined as the state of not being sure or certain (Kingsbury &
Coplan, 2015), while ambiguity can be defined as having more than one meaning
(Kingsbury & Coplan, 2015). Text messaging does not allow the sender’s non-verbal
behavior to be seen by the receiver, which deprives the receiver of witnessing the
emotions or body language that would usually be able to be visualized and evaluated.
By utilizing texting, a person’s visual frame of reference of body language and other
physical cues are unable to be seen, which allows the texter the ability to feel no
necessity to control their non-verbals and place more focus on the message itself (Wise
& Rodriguez, 2013). Even though texting can cause uncertainty, it can also be a more
effective form of communication.
Effectiveness
According to Ruesch & Bateson (1951) “communication is said to be the social
matrix of modern life”. “In May of 2013 81% of cellphone owners reported sending or
receiving text messages, and this proportion reached up to 94-97% for younger adults
aged between 18-49” (Park, Lee, & Chung, 2015). Texting to family and friends
outnumbered phone calls in 2008 with people texting more than twice as often as calling
(Crosswhite, Rice, & Asay, 2013). People have reported having a quicker response to
text messages and feeling more able to express feelings of honesty via text message
(Crosswhite, Rice, & Asay, 2013). A person who may be more filled with social anxiety
may prefer interacting via text messaging due to the feeling of being able to self-
disclose easier (Kingsbury & Coplan, 2015). Texters are lonelier than those who
conduct more face to face conversations, but more routine texters use texting as a way

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to maintain and improve their interpersonal relationships (Harrison & Gilmore, 2012)..
People use text messaging for a variety of different reasons. Some of those reasons
are occupying idle time, greeting, information exchanging, relationship maintenance,
activity planning, sharing pictures communicating intimacy, relationship improvement,
sharing jokes, apologizing, emotional support, news sharing, and reminders to name a
few. (Crosswhite, Rice, & Asay, 2013). Research suggests that using texting increases
relationship maintenance and the feeling of being connected between friends and family
alike (Crosswhite, Rice, & Asay, 2013).
Summary
In summary text messaging is rapidly becoming a more mainstream form of
communication. Text messaging can cause uncertainty due to lack of clarification and
misinterpreted intent of messages, but can also be an effective form of communication
in today’s extremely busy world. Men and women text heavily, with women being more
frequent texters than men (Crosswhite, Rice, & Asay, 2013). The majority of people of
the younger generation send and receive over 1,000 text messages in a month’s time
with some people sending and receiving over 5,000 (Crosswhite, Rice, & Asay, 2013).
While texting is now often used to replace face to face or telephone
conversations, some fear that this generation may be losing interpersonal
communication skills. In a generation that has grown up with texting as the norm form
of communication, their perception and importance placed on more traditional
interpersonal communications skills are much different from those of older generations
(Harrison & Gilmore, 2012).
H1: Text messaging has become a main form of communication.

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H2: Text messaging can cause uncertainty
H3: Text messaging can be an effective form of communication
Narrative
Background. The movie Disconnect (Rubin, 2012) is a dramatic film released in 2012
about people who are interpersonally disconnected in today’s digital world (IMDb.com, 2012).
The movie was released in the fall of 2012 in Toronto and the following spring of 2013 here in
the United States and includes a 7.6/10 rating. (IMDb.com, 2012). The movie contains three
different storylines happening simultaneously to the viewer’s perspective. All three stories
have a central theme of people being disconnected from their real life interpersonal
relationships due to spending more time texting via cell phone, Facebook messenger, or online
chat room. The movie showcases the characters experiencing uncertainty while using these
mediums of communication.
Importance. With today’s smartphones, tablets, and computers being almost
completely necessary to the world, the film really shows us how removing ourselves from the
real world into an electronic heavy world can cause problems in our real lives. It demonstrates
that conversations that take place using electronic devices cannot always take the place of
those that take place face to face or verbally over the phone because that may cause
uncertainty. The movie also shows the prevalence of texting today and how it can also
sometimes be a more effective form of communication. The movie is a really good example of
uncertainty when communicating via electronic devices as well as sometimes being an even
better communication tool than a real life conversation.

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Results
Data. To explore uncertainty during text message conversations, I watched the filmfor
the fourth time since fall semester and payed closer attention to the text messaging
conversations that happened throughout the movie. I was looking for times that text
messaging was more prominent than real life conversations and interactions, uncertainty in
texting being experienced, and when texting could be a more effective means of
communication. I looked for the movie on Hulu and Netflix, but to no avail, so I ended up
watching the DVD I purchased after initially seeing the movie last year. Watching the movie will
help us understand text messaging as a main and effective form of communication and how it
can also sometimes cause uncertainty.
Concept 1: Prevalence. The first story line shows a teenager working on a porn
website. Clients electronically “gift” the workers money or purchase items in exchange for the
ability to instruct them to do sexual activities while being filmed via webcam or laptop. The
clients can remain anonymous, as they can also choose to be visible to the worker. While
choosing to be invisible to the worker, they communicate by sending text messages in a
chatroom style setup where the worker can read the texts of all clients currently in the room.
The client can also gift more money for the ability to have a private chatroom which includes
only them and the worker. For even more gifts, they can choose to go “cam to cam” in which
the client would be self-disclosing their voice and physical identity.
The next story line is of a couple who is suffering after the loss of their infant son. The
husband copes by refusing to talk about it, choosing to not be intimate with his wife, and
engaging in electronic gambling online. The wife copes by communicating with another man in

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a chat room style support group. The support group allows users to keep their identity
anonymous while communicating through text messages. The wife communicates the grief of
losing her infant son with a man who has lost his wife. They are self-disclosing a lot of
information with one another regarding their similar losses. After telling the guy that today
would be the 1 year birthday of her and her husband’s baby. She texts him “tell me this gets
easier”, to which he replies “it takes time. How’s your husband?”. She heavily exhales and
types “Stuck. He can’t even talk about it. It’s like he’s broken inside”, but doesn’t send it. She
then hesitates, erases it, and types “He just flew to El Paso for work” instead, to which the guy
replies “So you’re going through this alone?”. She uncertain if she is sharing too much. She is
uncertain if it’s right to be having such an intimate conversation with another man about
something so personal and private. She also seems to be struggling with not wanting to blame
her husband for his coping skills and also doesn’t want to make him look bad. Later in the
movie the guy texts “maybe we can meet sometime?”. Before she can respond, she receives a
phone call from her husband. She thinks he’s calling to discuss their deceased son’s birthday,
but he is not. She hangs up with her husband and texts back, “maybe we can”. This guy knows
she married, but still suggests a face to face interaction with her. They have been talking in the
support room for a while since the death of the baby, but he wants a face to face, real life
conversation. The impersonality of only texting is not enough.
The third story focuses on a boy, Ben, who is an introvert, and another boy, Jason, who
appears to be a trouble maker. Jason, with the assistance of his friend, Frye, decide to make up
a fake Facebook profile, using the name Jessica Rhony. “Jessica” messages Ben a flirty message
and they converse back and forth for a while. One day while messaging “Jessica” at the dinner

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table with his parents and sister present, Ben’s mom asks Ben to put his cell phone away during
dinner. Ben looks over to his Dad (also texting on his cell phone) and verbally replies “he does
it”. “Jessica” keeps messaging Ben, sometimes in the company of Frye and other times not.
“Jessica” self discloses to Ben about her dead mother, which then leads to a conversation about
both of their lack of relationships with their Dads. “Jessica” discloses that her Dad is a cop who
blames his retirement on “her” after the death of “her” mother. Ben discloses that his Dad is a
lawyer who doesn’t share any interests with him, therefore they really don’t have a
relationship. “Jessica” and Frye send Ben a provocative message with a naked picture while
observing him during school and laugh at his physical reactions to the message. “Jessica”
pressures Ben by apologizing for sending “her” nude picture, and due to his lack of response,
expresses that “she’s” come to the conclusion that Ben must not be interested. Ben responds
with an actual naked picture of himself. “Jessica” feels bad, but when “she” starts to
demonstrate sympathy in front of Frye, he teases “Jessica” for having sympathy for Ben and
accuses “Jessica” of being in love with Ben. “Jessica” becomes defensive and saves face by
agreeing to share the picture with someone at their school. The picture spreads all over the
school and Ben is devastated and humiliated. He receives all kinds of hateful messages on his
Facebook, which results in Ben hanging himself in his room. After Ben is hospitalized, his Dad
starts messaging “Jessica” fromBen’s computer as himself. Ben’s Dad and “Jessica” are self-
disclosing a lot of information via text in Facebook messenger. Questions from Ben’s Dad
continue, followed by a request to talk with “Jessica” via phone call. “Jessica” gets scared and
replies “I gotta go”. “Jessica” feels guilty, but is comfortable texting with Ben’s Dad. Besides
not being able to reveal “her” true identity, “she” has actually engaged in a conversation with

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Ben’s Dad about “her” own relationship with “her” father. Later in the movie, Jason goes to see
Ben in the hospital and runs into Ben’s Dad. He lies and says his name is “Mike” and that he is a
friend of Ben’s. He still goes back to texting with Ben’s Dad as “Jessica”and at one point during
their conversation discloses “we didn’t mean for this to happen”. When Ben’s Dad replies
“we?”, “Jessica” gets scared and signs off and tries deleting the account. This further
demonstrates the relevance of texting and its usage in today’s world and the uncertainty
experienced when communicating via text messaging as well. Initially texting allowed Ben to
feel safe and social, while also giving “Jessica” someone to talk to about “her” own issues.
Concept 2: Effectiveness. In all three storylines of the movie, texting is an effective
form of communication. In the first story, after the client/reporter baits the worker to meet up
with her under false pretenses, they use texting as their main form of communication. It is
crucial in their storyline. It helps them effectively communicate at times when they cannot talk.
She texts him while working and he texts her while working. It keeps them in sync with each
other. In the second story, texting in the support group helps her cope with the loss of her
child. Even though the messages are via text, they are personal and comforting. The couple
reduced their uncertainty by becoming closer and opening up the door for a much needed
conversation about the death of their child. In the third story, texting helps Ben’s social skills.
It was shown that he was a loner, but when he started messaging “Jessica”, he had a very small
social life and confidant. Before the conversation took a turn for the worse, Ben and “Jessica”
enjoyed conversing and self-disclosing and their conversations were helping both of them deal
with their real life problems and provided a sense of understanding and empathy. It allowed
both teens a platform to say things they wouldn’t or couldn’t say in real life. When “Jessica”

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and Frye are caught by Jason’s father, Jason has an emotional breakdown, which deepens the
relationship between Jason and his Dad by reducing uncertainty by forcing Jason to confront his
father about their relationship. All three stories demonstrated texting prevalence and ended
up with the characters’ texting disconnection bringing them closer to the people in their real
life by reducing uncertainty.
Discussion
Implications. All three stories in the movie demonstrate the prevalence of text
messaging in today’s society. The film shows the positive and negative effects of using text
messaging. During a class discussion in 2015’s fall semester, the filmwas extremely relatable to
the students who watched the film during class. With the exception of the teacher and one
student, the students were included in the younger generation. A conversation was sparked
about the effectiveness of texting, the uncertainty it sometimes causes, and how it is a main
form of communication by an extensive discussion that spanned an entire class period of
almost two hours. Students discussed their reasons for texting and feelings of ease when self-
disclosing via text message vs in real life or via telephone call.
Limitations and Future Research
While these articles did a good job at discussing the relevance of text messaging,
it’s possible uncertainty, and its effectiveness, gender being a determining factor should
have been discussed more thoroughly. Text messaging patterns and clarification
differences between men and women would also be vital to this research and should be
more integrated in this research for future re-visitations. The absence of any data on
better understanding text messages and their perceptions vs their intentions would be
imperative to reducing uncertainty, which would greatly add to this research. Any

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research that targets the sender’s and receiver’s mood or frame of reference in regards
to text message etiquette and meanings would also assist in a clearer understanding
regarding text messages, reducing their uncertainty, and their effectiveness.
Conclusion
In conclusion this paper discussed the relevance of text messaging,
uncertainty in text messaging, and how text messaging can be an effective form of
communication. Text messages are the current leading way for many people to
communicate (Park, Lee, & Chung, 2015). People use text messaging for a variety of
different reasons. Some of those reasons are occupying idle time, greeting, information
exchanging, relationship maintenance, activity planning, sharing pictures
communicating intimacy, relationship improvement, sharing jokes, apologizing,
emotional support, news sharing, and reminders to name a few. While texting is now
often used to replace face to face or telephone conversations, some fear that this
generation may be losing interpersonal communication skills. In a generation that has
grown up with texting as the norm form of communication, their perception and
importance placed on more traditional interpersonal communications skills are much
different from those of the older generation.

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References
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Harrison, M., & Gilmore, A. (2012). U txt WHEN? College students' social contexts of text
messaging. The Social Science Jornal, 49, 513-518.
IMDb.com. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1433811/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Kingsbury, M., & Coplan, R. (2015). RU mad @ me? Social anxiety and the interpretation of
ambiguous text messages. Computers in Human Behavior, 54, 368-379.
Park, N., Lee, S., & Chung, J. E. (2015). Uses of cellphone texting: An intergration of motivations,
usage patterns, and psychological outcomes. Computers in Human Behavior, 62, 712-
719.
Rubin, H. A. (Director). (2012). Disconnect [Motion Picture].
Wise, M., & Rodriguez, D. (2013). Detecting Deceptive Communication Through Computer-
Mediated Technology: Applying Interpersonal Deception Theory to Texting Behavior, 30,
342-346.