García-Montes, Andrea2026-04-242026-04-242025-09-12https://riunet.upv.es/handle/10251/234586[EN] Emojis are mentioned in online child sexual grooming (OCSG) studies. However, research on such emojis in OCSG contexts is still in its infancy. In this investigation, we report the findings of the first linguistic analysis of emojis in OCSG discourse. The data comprise 70 chat logs (103,386 words, 3604 emojis) between offenders and real minors. The analysis, using a corpus-assisted discourse studies approach (Partington 2010), indicates that groomers predominantly use rapport enhancement and maintenance orientated emojis (Spencer-Oatey 2005). This suggests that groomers employ emojis to shape their interactions feigning a false love relationship/ friendship with their victims, which reveals their clear manipulation tactics. Finally, an analysis of collocates for two of the most frequent emojis (` red heart¿ and `smirking face ¿) is presented. The results show that they collocate with endearment terms, sexually vague and explicit terms, which highlights that emojis are a strategy employed in groomers¿ discourse for a certain purpose.Reserva de todos los derechosEmojisOnline child sexual groomingLinguistic manipulationCADSDigital discourseArtículo10.1075/ip.00126.garCerrado2542-386X05.- Alcanzar la igualdad entre los géneros y empoderar a todas las mujeres y niñas16.- Promover sociedades pacíficas e inclusivas para el desarrollo sostenible, facilitar acceso a la justicia para todos y crear instituciones eficaces, responsables e inclusivas a todos los niveles