parasocial relationships Flashcards
levels of parasocial relationships, absorption, and addiction
what is the absorption addiction model?
- when people have perceived deficiencies in their own lives, they become pre-occupied with a celebrity and identify with them to feel fulfilled
- a stronger and closer involvement to a celebrity can lead to more extreme behaviours and delusional thinking
- can explain parasocial relationships in terms of levels
what are the three levels of the absorption addiction model?
entertainment-social, intense-personal, and borderline-pathological
what is the entertainment-social level of the absorption addiction model?
- individuals may have a mild admiration for a celebrity or character
- it is the least intense level of PSR
what is the intense-personal level of the absorption addiction model?
- individuals become more engaged, following the celebrity more closely
- it is the intermediate level of PSR
what is the borderline-pathological level of the absorption addiction model?
- individuals feel a deep emotional connection and invest a significant amount of their time and energy into the relationship
- it is the strongest level of PSR
what is the absorption stage of the absorption addiction model?
- individuals become obsessed, and they start to focus their time and attention on the media figure
- they may begin to watch all videos, reading articles, etc
- the more time an individual spends absorbing information about the celebrity, the deeper their emotional involvement becomes
what is the addiction stage of the absorption addiction model?
- the individual becomes increasingly obsessed with the media figure
- this stage can lead to extreme behaviours, where the person’s life revolves around the parasocial relationship
- this can lead to negative outcomes like neglecting other relationships, spending time online, or experiencing emotional distress
a strength of the absorption addiction model is that it has supporting evidnece:
- maltby et al found that 14 - 16 year old females who had poor body images reported an intense personal PSR with a female who had a body they admired
- this supports the prediction that there is a correlational relationship between the level of PSR and perceived deficiencies in their own lives
- counterpoint - it was correlational research, and it used a small sample size
a strength of the absorption addiction model is that it is universal:
- schmid and klimmt
- researched fans feelings towards harry potter in germany and mexico
- they found that fans in both countries has very similar patterns of PSR with harry potter, regardless of their cultural norms and values
- this suggests that the model is universal and accurately reflects PSRs for a wide range of cultures
a weakness of the absorption addiction model is that it lacks explanatory power:
- the model only describes the characteristics of people at different levels of intensity, but does not explain why the different forms develop
- this limits its usefulness, as it may not offer an in depth explanation of parasocial relationships
a weakness of the absorption addiction model is that it is supported by self-report methods:
- this means that participants may not have been truthful due to social desirability bias
- the findings which support the absorption addiction model must be generalised with caution, meaning the model may not be fully representative
what is attachment theory?
- when a person develops a secure attachment, they are more likely to form healthy and balanced relationships
- however, people with insecure attachments seek comfort in parasocial relationships because they are looking for emotional support and security
how do insecure-avoidant attachments influence parasocial relationships?
- they seek parasocial relationships to avoid real life emotional connections
- they may not trust others fully or find it difficult to rely on others - they turn to celebrities for comfort
how do insecure-resistant attachments influence parasocial relationships?
- they are more prone to intense parasocial relationships due to inconsistent parenting
- they crave emotional closeness to feel more secure and validated
- they may become more overly attached and struggle with feelings of abandonment or disappointment
what are the three key behaviours associated with parasocial relationships?
proximity seeking, secure base, and protest at disruption
what is proximity seeking?
attempting to reduce the distance between themselves and the attachment figure - for example, always reading articles about them
what is a secure base?
the presence of the attachment figure provides a sense of security for the individuals, allowing them to explore other relationships
what is protest at distruption?
showing clear signs of distress at the absence of the attachment figure
a strength of the attachment theory is that there is supporting evidence from cohen:
- cohen found that people with an insecure-resistant attachment has the most negative reactions to losing a TV character
- this is similar to how people react to real relationship loses, supporting attachment theory
- counterpoint - correlational research
a strength of the attachment theory is that there is a supporting case study:
- parasocial relationships are a coping mechanism
- stever found that an 18 year old found comfort in michael jackson’s music after her father died
- this suggests that celebrities can act as a secure base, helping people cope with personal loses
- counterpoint - case study
