Parasocial Relationships Flashcards
(12 cards)
What is a parasocial relationship and who do they tend to involve
-A parasocial relationship is a one- sided relationship in which one of the partners is unaware that the relationship exists
-Parasocial relationships tend to involve people that are famous or well known e.g sportspeople or TV celebrities
Who suggested the levels of parasocial relationships and how many levels are there
Maltby et al (2006) suggested that there are three levels of parasocial relationships
Entertainment-social level
-This is the first level of parasocial relationships and this is when a celebrity or source of entertainment (e.g a TV program) provides gossip and social bonding for people
For example, Harry and Zach often discuss Coronation Street on their coffee break at work
Intense-Personal
-This level involves a more serious and focused interest in the individual, with frequent thoughts and daydreams about them
Borderline Pathological Level
-Borderline Pathological is the most extreme level of parasocial relationships
and may involve aggressive acts or delusional thoughts about the celebrity
Absorption Addiction model
-The absorption addiction model suggests that people have the tendency to form parasocial relationships to compensate for the deficiencies in their own lives
-These deficiencies may include: a weak sense of self worth or lack of fulfillment in everyday relationships
-Parasocial relationships allows an “escape from reality” and a way of finding fulfillment that they can’t achieve in everyday relationships
Absorption part of the absorption addiction model
-People become obsessed with the celebrities existence, and identify with them due to deficiencies
Addiction part of the Absorption addiction model
-They feel as if they have to sustain the relationship by having a stronger and closer involvement
-This can lead to more extreme behaviors such as stalking
Attachment theory explanation of parasocial relationships
-The attachment theory explanation of parasocail relationships suggests that those who have dysfunctional attachment types are more likely to form parasocial relationships i.e insecure avoidant and insecure resistant are more likely to form parasocial relationships than secure attachment styles
-This is because, the lack of nurture and care in childhood may lead to people believing that close personal relationships are difficult and overwhelming, therefore leading them to form parasocial relationships with people that cannot cause them pain or make demands of them
Positive research evaluation for the absorption addiction model (Mathby et al. 2006)
There is research evidence to support the absorption addiction model: Mathby et al. (2006) found that adolescent girls in particular, formed intense-personal relationships with female celebrities
-This in turn contributed to eating disorders and body dysmorphia, due to the effect of comparing themselves negatively against the celebrity
Negative evaluation of parasocial relationships as a whole (social desirability bias)
-Much of the research done on parasocial relationships use self report methods
-This may be an embarassing topic to speak about, therefore the results may suffer from social desirability bias, reducing the validity of the results and the theories outlining parasocial relationships
Positive research evaluation for the attachment style explanation of parasocial relationships (Greenwood and Long 2006)
-Greenwood and Long (2006) found that participants who had insecure attachment types were more likely to have imagined intimacy with a celebrity than those who had secure attachment styles
-This supports the theory that attachment styles are predictive of parasocial relationships
