A literature review investigated the still nebulous area of email's implications for literacy learning by reviewing the existing literature across disciplines on the interests and concerns of literacy researchers and educators about email and the major issues and areas of concerns which are and will be relevant for literacy researchers. The empirical papers and position papers examined dealt with email's impact on human behavior, cognition, and affects and its characteristics facilitating or hampering human interactions. Materials reviewed were published between the mid-1980s and late 1995. Results of the literature review indicated that (1) in reducing the social cues and enriching functions of easy editing, storing, and manipulating, email lends itself to more user control and user responsibility; (2) email is capable of bringing traditionally peripheral persons into the instructional mainstream; (3) due to its reduced sense of social presence, email communication exhibits some sense of anonymity and depersonalization; (4) email is direct, straight forward and more self-centered; (5) email offers users chances to develop positive attitudes but can also touch off some undesirable behaviors; and (6) anecdotal reports suggest that email might have effects on social behaviors such as collaboration and motivation. Further research should investigate cognitive implications of email-related literacy activities, social effects such as increased collaboration, affective anecdotes concerning motivation, and email's effects on different age groups and different language proficiency groups. (Contains 88 references.) (RS)