The Absorption Addiction Model

Question 1

What does the Absorption Addiction Model (McCutcheon et al, 2002) suggest?

Answer 1

that people pursue parasocial relationships to compensate for deficiencies within their real life.

Question 2

Why may this be?

Answer 2

because they experience difficulty in forming intimate relationships, have poor psychological functioning and a lack of identity.

Question 3

What is absorption?

Answer 3

Individuals focus their attention on the celebrity, finding out everything they can about them, becoming preoccupied with them and begin to identify with them.
This gives them a sense of fulfilment and motivates them to become intensely attached to the
celebrity.

Question 4

What is addiction?

Answer 4

-The sense of fulfilment becomes all-consuming for the person who at the extreme end seeks ever greater involvement with the celebrity.
-The individual needs to sustain their commitment to the relationship by feeling a stronger and closer involvement with the
celebrity.
-This may lead to more extreme risky behaviours (e.g. stalking) and delusional thinking (e.g. that the celebrity loves them)