Absorption Midel Flashcards
What is The absorption addiction model
The absorption addiction model attempts to explain why people develop parasocial relationships. It argues that pursuing a parasocial relationships makes up for deficits in an individuals real life relationships. Relationships with celebrities are seen as an attempt to cope or escape from reality
What will people with an addicted behaviour escalate through
They will escalate through a series of stages until their parasocial relationship becomes a total pre occupation with a celebrities life
What are the two components to the absorption addiction model
Absorption - seeking fulfilment in celebrity worship motivates one to focus all their attention on the celebrity, to become pre occupied in their existence and identify with them
addiction - the individual sustains their commitment to the relationship by feeling a stronger and close involvement with the celebrity. This leads to more extreme behaviours and delusional thinking. E.g. stalking
Strengths
Research supports a link between loneliness and engaging in parasocial relationships. For example greenwood and long found some evidence that people may develop parasocial relationships as a way of dealing with recent loss or loneliness
Stalkers often have a history of failed sexual relationships at the time of the stalking, stalking in such cases is a reaction to social incompetence, isolation and loneliness
Maltby et al measured the relationship between parasocial relationships and body image in teenagers. They found that teenage girls who engaged in parasocial relationships tended to have a poor body image, especially if they admired a celebrities physical appearance
Weakness absorption addiction model
Most research into parasocial relationships is correlarional. Meaning that the cause and effect cannot be directly established, lowering the explanatory power. E.g. whilst a significant correlation was found between poor body image and intensive parasocial relationships in teenage girls does not mean, intense parasocial relationships cause poor body image. It may be that girls who already have poor body image engage in parasocial relationships in order to enhance their self esteem
The absorption-addiction model is better suited to describing levels of parasocial relationships than explaining how people develop these attitudes. This model attempts to establish universal principles of behaviour and as such misses out on deep insight into the reasons for behaviour. Looking into particular instances of parasocial relationships, may be better suited to uncovering the reasons for why people develop them.
