My Leader Sent Me a 😊: The Influence of Leader Smile Emoji Usage on Follower Attitude

Abstract Digital technology enables employees to communicate with each other via virtual platforms. Emoji, particularly smile emoji, has received significant attention in virtual communication research. Drawing upon expectancy violation theory, we propose that in digital communications with followers, leader smile emoji usage has a positive effect on follower satisfaction with leader through perceived leader intimacy. In addition, leader smile emoji usage has a negative effect on perceived leader effectiveness through decreased perception of leader power. We further propose that the effects of leader smile emoji usage hinge on follower power distance orientation such that the negative effects of leader smile emojis usage are more pronounced for followers with high versus low power distance orientation. An experiment and a field study supported our hypotheses. Our research sheds light on the benefits and potential pitfalls of smile emoji usage in leader–follower digital communication.