Digital Colourism? Understanding Emoji Skin Tone Preferences Among Indian-Origin Users

Emoji skin tone modifiers, designed to reflect human skin tone diversity, can signal racial and ethnic identities, shaping user preferences. However, much of this knowledge is derived from Western cultural contexts. Given that cultural norms shape user preferences and identity associations with emoji skin tones, understanding perspectives from users globally is essential. To this end, we conducted a survey to examine skin tone modifier preferences among Indian-origin users. Our findings suggest that women, regardless of self-perceived skin tone, are more likely to use emoji skin tones matching their own and value the range of options more than men. Our discussion raises caution about designing for neutrality in computing and offers directions for future research.