Those hyper-emotional and moralizing tweets may get a lot of action in the Twittersphere, but they’re probably not changing anyone’s thinking, according to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States.

An analysis of more than half a million highly charged political tweets on Twitter revealed that the chances of retweets increased by 20 percent for each use of a word researchers categorized as having both moral and emotional connotations (such as “hate”). Yet the 140-character conversation starters rarely left their respective political bubbles. While moral-emotional language attracted attention, retweets were mostly from people holding the same view on the issue.

The study, led by psychologist William Brady at New York University, focused on tweets related to three polarizing topics: gun control, climate change and same-sex marriage. As the tweets and retweets launched, researchers considered which side of the debate each participant represented.

A graph of the findings shows a highly concentrated red blob of conservative speech on one side and a blue one on the other, with few conversational lines transcending the divide.

If there is a lesson for Christian leaders, perhaps it’s that preaching to the choir on social media isn’t the most effective way to win new converts.

To learn more about graciously and effectively engaging people on controversial issues, check out these resources:

• “Influence Podcast: How to Debate Hot-Button Issues Well”
• “Influence Podcast: Winsome Persuasion”