ABSTRACT
Emotions are at the heart of interpersonal communication. That is, much of what is communicated in an interpersonal context is interpreted as or guided by emotions. In contemporary textbooks on interpersonal communication, the interpersonal of interpersonal communication is primarily defined by the quality of the interaction, being personal as opposed to impersonal (Beebe, et al., 2002; DeVito, 2004; Wood, 2002). Hence, communication qualified as emotional is more likely to be included in the area of the interpersonal than communication without emotions. Perhaps because people believe that emotions reflect our most authentic selves (Bellman, 2003; Frijda, 1988). For example, intimacy, becoming friends, knowing one another, and resolving conflict goes hand in hand with personal affect and emotional experiences and these topics are typically included in interpersonal textbooks. Whether this stance is justified or not, emotions do play an important role in our daily communication. This does not necessarily mean that emotions are communicated explicitly or effectively. Sometimes, we even don’t recognize our own emotions (e.g., nonidentified feelings of uneasiness) or express them differently (e.g., women are known for crying when actually being angry), making it difficult to correctly identify. Furthermore, emotions play an important role in guiding behavior, revealing what is important to one’s goals, and have social communicative functions, among others.
