Parasocial Relationships

• What are parasocial relationships?

  Parasocial relationships are one-sided unreciprocated relationships with a celebrity where one person invests time, emotions, and possibly money into the other person, while the other party is unaware of their existence.
• What are the three levels of parasocial relationships in order, starting with the most "sane"?

  1. Entertainment-social
  2. Intense-personal
  3. Borderline-pathological
• Describe the entertainment-social stage of parasocial relationships.

  The relationship with the celebrity is a source of fun, shared with others in a social group.
• Describe the intense-personal stage of parasocial relationships.

  Obsessive thoughts begin to arise in relation to the celebrity.
• Describe the borderline-pathological stage of parasocial relationships.

  Obsessive thoughts begin to give rise to fully-fledged fantasies and behaviours. In this stage, stalking may begin, which involves a level of pursuit that is intimidating.
• The absorption-addiction model by McCutcheon can be used to explain parasocial relationships.
• The absorption addiction model:

  McCutcheon linked more intense levels of parasocial relationships with either absorption or addiction. This model can therefore explain why a person develops a parasocial relationship.
• Why may people form parasocial relationships in one of the more "intense" stages?

  People with parasocial relationships usually have deficiencies like low self-esteem and a lack of fulfilment in their everyday relationships.

  Someone may move from entertainment-social to a more intense involvement by a trigger like a personal crisis or stressful life event. The parasocial relationship allows them to ‘escape from reality’.
• Describe the two components of the absorption-addiction model, making sure to state which component is cognitive and which is behavioural.

  Adsorption (cognitive):

  An individual becomes absorbed in following a celebrity - this relationship is a form of escapism.

  Addiction (behavioural):

  In some cases the parasocial relationship becomes addictive and the individual becomes more and more obsessed with the celebrity. This can lead to extreme behaviour, like stalking. This usually happens as a result of poor mental health, or some sort of crisis.
• Attachment theory in explaining parasocial relationships:

  People who experience poor childhood attachments will be most likely to form a parasocial relationship. This is because they will seek to meet their attachment need, even if it is with someone who doesn’t reciprocate the same level of attention in return.
• How can a negative/dysfunctional internal working model be used to explain parasocial relationships?

  If the initial foundations for affection and attachment are disrupted the person affected may not be able to form healthy functional relationships later on, leading to parasocial relationships
• Which type of attachment used in attachment theory is most likely to form parasocial relationships?

  Insecure-resistant types are most likely to form parasocial relationships. This is because they feel the need for fulfilment through relationships that do not involve the chance of rejection. For example, intensive celebrity worship allows these people to engage in fantasies about the perfect relationship, without the heartbreak of rejection.
• Why is insecure-avoidant more likely to avoid parasocial relationships compared to insecure-resistant?

  They are more likely to avoid the pain of rejection of relationships altogether, regardless of whether this is social or parasocial.