Have you ever felt connected to a celebrity or any public figure because of how they talk, act or their backstory? You feel that even though you’ve never met them, they get you better than even the people around you. You understand them, and in your eyes, no matter what, they can do no wrong. This connection makes us empathise with them to the point that their feelings become our own. Their achievements, successes and happiness make us proud and happy. In turn, their setbacks, failures, and sadness sadden us too.
Isn’t it strange to care so much about someone when they don’t even know of our existence? Yet it happens all the time. This isn’t a one-time thing either, but rather something that stays with us. More than a fleeting fancy, it becomes a source of not just entertainment but also happiness, comfort and a bond transcending conventional norms.
Read More: The Psychology Behind Celebrity Obsession
What is a Parasocial Relationship?
A parasocial relationship refers to the one-sided relationship that we often develop with celebrity figures we see on screen. Donald Horton and Richard Wohl were the first to coin this term in 1956 when TVs became popular and viewers started to form strong attachments with the personas on screen. It is a strong psychological relationship wherein a person develops a strong sense of attachment, intimacy or familiarity with someone they don’t know or haven’t ever met. This relationship is unreciprocated and often restricted to the mind of the viewer.
Read More: Is Emotional Intimacy Key to a Lasting Relationship?
Why do we get attached?
1. Need for connection
Humans are inherently social animals. As such, we form bonds with those around us. Especially in a society that is continuously turning individualistic, the need for connection continues to increase. With the rise of different forms of media, we are more exposed to celebrity figures. Whether it be television, online videos or social media platforms, we’re constantly surrounded by actors, performers, influencers and thus we naturally form connections with them.
2. Escapism
People have to face various stressful situations throughout their daily lives. In such cases, parasocial relationships can seem to be the perfect getaway from one’s own problems. These one-sided bonds work as a coping mechanism for loneliness and life problems, providing escape and protection.
3. Projection
Parasocial relationships provide a space for individuals to attribute their own feelings, emotions and desires to a public figure whom they will never interact with. This helps individuals to process things, project their ideal selves, their dreams and hopes onto the celebrity, giving them a sense of “seeing themselves” from a safe distance.
4. Perceived Familiarity and Recognition
Due to the ease of access to social media platforms that often share personal details of celebrities, we often start to feel a sense of familiarity with such individuals. From their go-to snacks, nighttime skin-care routine, all the way to their favourite childhood toy, all such information is readily available to us. This feeling of knowing someone helps in developing a stronger bond.
- Companionship: Clinical Psychologist, Adam Borland, PsyD, writes, “A parasocial relationship can be a potential source of connection, comfort and companionship, especially if you feel lonely, isolated or deal with social anxiety.” Parasocial relationships often fill a huge isolation gap, offering support and companionship.
- Validation: Having preferences that are different from others often gives a sense of discontentment and a feeling that no one understands you. Knowing that your favourite singer is just as shy as you or has a similar backstory to you gives a feeling of relatability, validation and a sense of acceptance.
- Source of inspiration and motivation: The person with whom an individual has a parasocial relationship often serves as their role model, acting as an important source of inspiration and motivation to set and achieve their goals. For instance, a person inspired by their favourite singer might start taking singing lessons.
- Safe space for self-expression: Parasocial relationships don’t involve direct interactions; thus, there’s no room for conflicts, and individuals don’t have to fear rejection. This provides a comfortable place for the person to express themselves and also explore their interests without the pressure of reciprocation. At large, it helps in growth and self-expression.
Read More: The Psychology Behind Soft Toy Attachment
How do these attachments help? When it can be harmful
- Isolation: While loneliness and isolation are often notable factors that draw people to form one-sided connections and drive parasocial relationships, people are often so drawn to the personal on the screen that the world surrounding them and their real-life relationships cease to hold importance for them. At last, it ends up becoming the source of the problem it set out to cure.
- Increased toxicity: Fandom culture, an important type of parasocial relationship, often fosters a sense of superiority over others in the “fanfans. Jealousy and insecurity may manifest in much more toxic forms, fueling hatred amongst individuals.
- Emotional Dependence: Individuals become overly reliant on their favourite celebrities for emotional support and happiness. This can impair one’s ability to form healthy reciprocal relationships and attachments with others in their real lives.
- Unrealistic expectations: The personas of the public figures are often crafted to c, whether it be physical body, personality or professional charm. The idealisation of such personas may result in unrealistic standards and expectations in real life, which, if not met, lead to extreme disappointment.
- Consumerism and exploitation: The emotional connections formed by individuals are the points of exploitation of the viewer’s resources. Opportunistic brands sell various products and services in the name of the celebrity. This results in excessive spending on items that individuals don’t even require.
Conclusion
Oftentimes, we find ourselves making actual, deep connections with celebrities and public figures, though we’ve never met them in real life. This phenomenon is often called parasocial relationships, and they generate empathy and understanding while providing comfort and may have a positive influence on individuals. Parasocial relationships often occur because of a need for social and emotional connections, a search for an escape, a projection of an idealised self or even a perception of intimacy with the public figure caused by overexposure through modern media platforms.
They provide comfort through offering companionship, validation for our feelings and actions, and providing a safe space for self-expression and exploration of one’s identity. They also constantly motivate and inspire individuals to be better and achieve their goals. However, there are several undeniable pitfalls to such attachments.
When overdone, they may result in overdependence on unrealistic standards, increased loneliness and even a respectful admiration turning obsessive and toxic. Additionally, brands use such opportunities for the exploitation of people’s resources through overconsumerism. Parasocial relationships are an inevitable part of today’s interconnected world. But how we decide to form and balance them is what makes the difference.
FAQs
1. What is a Parasocial relationship?
Parasocial relationships refer to the one-sided attachments that we often form with media figures. It is a strong psychological relationship that involves intense feelings of familiarity and intimacy with the said media figure.
2. Why do we form parasocial relationships?
Parasocial relationships can be a result of several reasons, including the individual’s need for connection and companionship, an urge to escape from real-life problems, a perceived familiarity with the media figure and a projection of one’s idealised self onto them.
3. When can parasocial attachments be harmful?
Parasocial relationships, if overdone, can result in overdependence on the media figure, increased toxicity, unreal and impractical expectations from the individual’s own self and others, heightened toxicity and often overconsumerism and exploitation.
References +
parasocial-relationships https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/parasocial-relationships
parasocial-relationships-benefits https://time.com/6294226/parasocial-relationships-benefits
parasocial-relationships: What You Need to Know www.healthline.com
parasocial-relationships-the-psychology-of-celebrity-crushes
https://thepsychologysquare.com/parasocial-relationships-the-psychology-of-celebrity-crushes/
Friend or Faux: Are Parasocial Relationships Healthy? https://health.clevelandclinic.org/parasocial-relationships
