So basically, if you are the guy or girl who texts back immediately, you are taken for granted and ultimately lower your value as a reward. As a result, the person doesnt feel as much of an urge to text you or, in the case of the lab animal, push the lever.

Is it bad to reply right away?

Post Sennings general rule is to not wait longer than one to three hours to reply, he tells TI. A text conversation can go stale in a few hours, he says. Dont just make them wait. If youre crushing on someone, dont play mind games, he says.

Is it rude not to respond to a text right away?

If you ever sit there wondering why someone wont reply to a text you just sent, youre not alone. According to a new paper from researchers at Google, impatience is a universal condition now. According to their study messaging etiquette says waiting more than 20 minutes to respond can be seen as rude.

Is responding too fast a turn off?

Out of 132 people who participated, 89% (118 people) voted that texting back quickly is a TURN-ON and 11% (14 people) voted TURN-OFF. One voter let me know she tapped “off” by accident so these results are slightly skewed, but still—the results are clearly in favor of texting back fast being a turn on.