Discuss one or more social psychological explanations for the attraction of celebrity. (4+6)

Question 1

Explanations

Answer 1

Para-social relationships, Attachment theory

Question 2

Para-social relationships

Answer 2

We encounter celebrities through films and TV, often learning a lot of information about them - these repeated encounters give us a strong sense of familiarity. The media enable us to feel that we have relationships with them which feel like real relationships - a para-social relationship is one side: one person knows a lot about the other and may feel affection for them, yet the recipient of this affection may be unaware of the other person’s existence

Question 3

3 types of media figure with who we can form para-social relationships

Answer 3

1. real people such as TV presenters, 2. fictional non-human characters, 3. fictional non-human characters, such as cartoon characters which are not visually represented by a human

Question 4

Transportation

Answer 4

getting immersed in a story, bringing out strong emotions

Question 5

Ending of real relationships

Answer 5

been found to lead to depression, and is a common reason for seeking counselling

Question 6

Meyrowitz

Answer 6

described extreme reactions exhibited at the death of celebrities such as Elvis Presley and John Lennon - this similarity between real and para-social relationships therefore supports the explanation

Question 7

Eyal and COhen

Answer 7

investigated whether this could be extended to ending parasocial relationships with fictional characters. Following the airing of the last episode of ‘Friends’, 279 students completed surveys assessing the strength of their para-social relationship with their favourite Friends character and the strength of their feeling about the break up - the researchers found that the amount of break up distress was best predicted by the intensity of their parasocial relationship with their favourite character - However, the duration of the parasocial relationship did not predict the esteem of break up distress - it has been found that the longer real relationships last, the more painful is their loss

Question 8

Problem with para-social relationships

Answer 8

Does not explain why having a para-social relationship is more of an attraction to some people than others - para-social relationships explanation only says that media makes such relationships possible, rather than explaining why the behaviour occurs

Question 9

Ainsworth’s Attachment Types

Answer 9

Type A - insecure avoidant, Type B - secure, Type C - insecure resistant - attachments developed in infancy remain fairly stable over a lifetime because children develop an internal working model of relationships (a set of expectations about relationships which stays with them throughout life) - If para-social relationships with celebrities are similar to real relationships then just as childhood attachment style affects later adult relationships so it should affect adult’s para-social relationships

Question 10

Type C’s

Answer 10

are often very emotional and seek intimacy but have negative views about themselves - intense attraction to a celebrity allows them to express their emotions without fear of rejection

Question 11

Type B’s

Answer 11

have less fear of rejection so are less attracted by celebrities than type Cs

Question 12

Type As

Answer 12

show the least celebrity attraction: their unwillingness to form a para-social relationship reflects their hesitancy to make emotional commitments in real life

Question 13

Attachment theory’s strength

Answer 13

can explain why having a para-social relationship is more of an attraction to some people than others

Question 14

Cole and Leets

Answer 14

Supports the role of attachment in celebrity attraction - 63 female and 53 male students completed: 1. a para-socail interaction Likert scale which included 20 items such as “I think my favourite Tv personality is like an old friend”, 2. A 15 item likert scale to assess attachment style with items such as ‘i find it relatively easy to get close to someone’ (Type B), 3. Hazan and Shaver’s single paragraph descriptors of the three styles - participants have to choose which best describes them - found that Type C ppts were most likely to form a para-social relationship, Type A least likely and Type B in the middle

Question 15

Cohen

Answer 15

Israeli participants completed questionnaires indicating how they would react if their favourite TV characters were taken off air. The most negative responses were from participants having resistant attachment, supporting the idea that such people invest more heavily than others in para-social relationships