Research and Findings

From the chart below, we can see that people always spend a lot of time on using MSN/ICQ.

Most of them use MSN/ICQ language to communicate with others.

In Taiwan, there is even some mock paper with a few questions about MSN/ICQ language. MSN/ICQ language has already become part of our lifes.

The main reason of using MSN/ICQ language

On another hand, people seldom write in correct grammar when they use MSN/ICQ language.

It may affect their usage of grammar or even language. They may not be able to write or read correctly. They may not be able to earn money for daily life. And some people believe that it may affect the usage of language.

Teenagers in Hong Kong always use MSN/ICQ and MSN/ICQ language. The result of HKCEE shows that the average of language subject becomes lower. That change maybe costs by always writing in a incorrect grammar. The chart below shows that MSN/ICQ language may not be good for us. You may say that it is much convenient than proper English.But I can tell you that it is not.

University of Tasmania lecturer Nenagh Kemp asked 55 undergraduate students to compose, and then to read aloud, text messages in English and in "textese." While students were significantly faster using textese, it took almost half the number of students twice as long to read these messages aloud than messages written in proper English. The students also made more errors reading the textese messages compared to the ones written in English. "It's quicker to write in textisms, but when you go on to read it, it took people longer. As skilled adult readers, we're used to reading full words and sentences, so it is harder for us to decipher," Kemp, a psychology lecturer who specializes in language use, told Reuters. Kemp said her research showed that despite the popular belief that textese is ruining spelling, it actually does not reflect literary skills, at least in adults.