Explanations For Attraction To Celebrity Flashcards
Describe the evolutionary explanation of attraction to celebrity.
Familiarity - we are attracted to celebrities as they are familiar and we have developed a proximal psychological mechanism to avoid strangers and be with those familiar.
Mate selection - attracted to celebrities as they possess the qualities we desire in a mate. Men seek youth, attractiveness and fertility. Women seek resourcefulness and strength.
Describe the Parasocial Relationships explanation of attraction to celebrity.
According to the theory of Parasocial relationships, these are relationships in which one half (the non-celebrity) invests a huge amount of time and money in to a relationship in which it is not reciprocated by the recipient (celebrity) and is often unknown by the celebrity. People do this to develop a personal identity and to satisfy emotional needs with a relationship.
Evolutionary explanations - studies?
Familiarity - ACKERMAN found that celebrities are often treated by their stalkers as friends.
Mate selection - Waynforth and Dunbar found that in personal ads, people seek qualities that are commonly held by celebrities.
