Abstract
Whilst many studies focus on human-to-media interactions, this paper turns to how a multimodal medium contributes to human-to-human
interaction. By bringing together both radical embodied cognitive science (Chemero
2009) and dialogism (Linell 2009), the paper develops an
anti-representationalist approach to the concept of social presence. We use an exploratory study of close friendships that
maintain their interaction through the use of the mobile instant messaging service WhatsApp. In so doing, we describe texting as
language-activity where people engage with each other by using resources from body, environment, and brain. Our work represents a
major departure from previous studies of mobile interaction in adopting an embodied view of language and cognition. By so doing,
we show how parties create anticipatory routines that enable them to ‘hear’ and ‘see’ their interlocutor. The paper’s main
contribution is to draw attention to this kind of heightened social presence that we choose to call “co-imagining”.