Digital Visual Communication for Public Health: Design Proposal for a Vaccinated Emoji

Tamara Sonia Boender, Noah Louis-Ferdinand, Gideon Duschek

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

In the 21st century, the internet and particularly social media have become essential platforms for the spread of health information (including misinformation and disinformation). One of the distinguishing features of communication on these platforms is the widespread use of emojis. Though seemingly trivial emojis are now used by many if not most public health figures and organizations alongside important health updates. Much of that information has had to do with vaccination. Vaccines are a critical public health tool but one surrounded by falsehoods, phobias, and misinformation fueling vaccine hesitancy. Part of that has to do with their lack of positive representation on social media (eg, the syringe emoji is a plain needle, which for many people is an uncomfortable image). We thus argue that vaccination deserves an entirely new emoji to communicate vaccine confidence and discuss a design proposal for a vaccinated emoji that has gained traction in the global public health community.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere35786
Pages (from-to)e35786
JournalJournal of Medical Internet Research
Volume24
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 7 Apr 2022

Bibliographical note

©Tamara Sonia Boender, Noah Louis-Ferdinand, Gideon Duschek. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (https://www.jmir.org), 07.04.2022.

Keywords

  • COVID-19
  • Communication
  • Humans
  • Public Health
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Social Media
  • Vaccines

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