Y/N and OOMFs: Development, Maintenance, and Consequences of Parasocial Relationships on Stan Twitter
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The study examines Stan Twitter users’ sense of belonging and their likelihood of creating PSRs as a substitute for real-life connections lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A convergent mixed-method design: specifically, the parallel databases variant was used to test the hypothesis and explore research questions. Conducted in January 2022, the study involved online interviews via Zoom with participants from the Philippines. Participants included Stan Twitter users (N = 126) and non-Stan Twitter users (N = 111), all at least 18 years old. Additionally, qualitative interviews were conducted with Stan Twitter users (N = 12) to explore PSRs in depth. Quantitative results (t = 0.548; p = 0.584) indicate no significant difference in the need to belong between the samples; Pandemic (i.e., period) and generational (i.e., Gen Z) effects are seen as contributors. Qualitative results show that PSRs develop due to fulfillment of belongingness needs and other factors, are maintained through parasocial interactions and fandom activities, and have both negative and positive implications for stans’ relationships, fandom behavior, personal growth, and well-being. The findings suggest reinforcing cybersecurity measures and potentially redefining PSRs due to their perceived reciprocation.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
References
Amri, W. A. (2020). Kpop fans fanatism in social media Instagram. International Journal of Cultural and Social Science, 1(1), 25-34.
Arasa, D. (2021). Have you ever wondered what is Stan Twitter? Retrieved from https://usa.inquirer.net/67142/have-you-ever-wondered-what-is-stan-twitter.
Aw, E. C. X., & Chuah, S. H. W. (2021). “Stop the Unattainable Ideal for an Ordinary Me!” fostering Parasocial Relationships with Social Media Influencers: The role of self- discrepancy. Journal of Business Research, 132(7), 146-157.
Barth, F. D. (2015). Social media and adolescent development: Hazards, pitfalls, and opportunities for growth. Clinical Social Work Journal, 43(2), 201-208.
Baumeister, R. F. (2012). Need-to-belong theory (pp. 121-140). In Van Lange, P. A. M., Kruglanski, A. W., & Higgins, E. T. (Eds.)., Handbook of theories of social psychology. London, U.K.: Sage Publications.
Baumeister, R. F., & Leary, M. R. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 117(3), 497-529.
Baym, N. K. (2015). Social Media and the Struggle for Society. Social Media + Society, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305115580477
Bercero, G., & Abadiano, M. (2020). Fandom dynamics on stan Twitter: A grounded theory. Psychology and Education 58(2), 9549-9562.
Bermond, A. (2020). The Role of Potential for Interaction in Parasocial Relationships. (Master’s thesis). USA: The University of Mississippi.
Blight, M. G. (2016). Relationships to video game streamers: Examining gratifications, parasocial relationships, fandom, and community affiliation online (Master’s thesis). USA: The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Blight, M. G., Ruppel, E. K., & Schoenbauer, K. V. (2017). Sense of Community on Twitter and Instagram: Exploring the roles of motives and parasocial relationships. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 20(5), 314-319.
Boddy, J. & Dominelli, L. (2017). Social media and social work: The challenges of a new ethical space. Australian Social Work, 70(2),172-184.
Bond, B. J. (2016). Following your “friend”: Social media and the strength of adolescents’ parasocial relationships with media personae. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 19(11), 656-660.
Bond, B. J. (2018). Parasocial relationships with media personae: Why they matter and how they differ among heterosexual, lesbian, gay, and bisexual adolescents. Media Psychology, 21(3), 457-485.
Bond, B. J. (2021). Social and parasocial relationships during COVID-19 social distancing. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 38(8), 2308-2329.
Brooks, S. K. (2018). FANatics: Systematic literature review of factors associated with celebrity worship and suggested directions for future research. Current Psychology: A Journal for Diverse Perspectives on Diverse Psychological Issues, 40(2), 864-886.
Cardenas, J. (2019). To affinity and beyond: A qualitative exploration of fandom learning, empathy, and reactionary fandom culture (Master’s thesis). San Marcos, Texas: Texas State University.
Choi, E. J., King, G., & Duerden, E. (2023). Screen time in children and youth during the pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Global Pediatrics, 6(6), 100080.
Chung, S. & Cho, H. (2017). Fostering Parasocial Relationships with Celebrities on Social Media: Implications for Celebrity Endorsement. Psychology and Marketing, 34(4), 481-495.
Clarke, V. & Braun, V. (2016). Thematic analysis. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 12(3), 297-298.
Cohen, R. J., & Swerdlik, M. E. (2017). Psychological testing and assessment (9th eds.). New York, USA: McGraw-Hill Education.
Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2017). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd eds.). California, USA: SAGE Publications.
Degen, J. L. (2023). Rationalizing fiction cues: Psychological effects of disclosing ads and the inaccuracy of the human mind when being in parasocial relationships. Informing Sci. Int. J. an Emerg. Transdiscipl., 26, 85-101.
Escalas, J. E. & Bettman, J. R. (2017). Connecting with celebrities: How consumers appropriate celebrity meanings for a sense of belonging. Journal of Advertising, 46(2), 297-308.
Fernandes, B., Biswas, U., Tan-Mansukhani, R., Vallejo, A., & Essau, C. (2020). The impact of COVID-19 lockdown on internet use and escapism in adolescents. Revista de Psicología Clínica con Niños y Adolescentes, 7, 59-65.
González-Padilla, D. A., & Tortolero-Blanco, L. (2020). Social media influence in the COVID-19 Pandemic. Int. Braz J Urol, 46(1), 120-124.
Hartmann, T., & Goldhoorn, C. (2011). Horton and wohl revisited: Exploring viewers’ experience of parasocial interaction. Journal of Communication, 61, 1104-1121.
Hedderson, M. M., Bekelman, T. A., Li, M., Knapp, E. A., Palmore, M., Dong, Y., Elliott, A. J., Friedman, C., Galarce, M., Gilbert-Diamond, D., Glueck, D., Hockett, C. W., Lucchini, M., McDonald, J., Sauder, K., Zhu, Y., Karagas, M. R., Dabelea, D., Ferrara, A., & Environmental influences on child health outcomes program (2023). Trends in screen time use among children during the COVID-19 pandemic, July 2019 through August 2021. JAMA network open, 6(2), e2256157.
Hong, S. (2020). The Real K-pop idols of fanfiction: reclaiming “real person” fanfiction as K-pop industry practice (Master’s thesis). Montreal, Canada: McGill University.
Horton, D., & Wohl, R. (1956). Mass communication and parasocial interaction: observations on intimacy at a distance. Psychiatry, 19, 215-219.
Hu, C. (2020, March 20). How fans can support artists and music-industry workers during the outbreak. NPR.org. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2020/03/20/818539328/how-fans-can-support-artists-and-music-industry-workers-during-the-outbreak.
Hwang, T. J., Rabheru, K., Peisah, C., Reichman, W., & Ikeda, M. (2020). Loneliness and social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. International Psychogeriatrics, 32(10), 1217-1220.
Jarzyna, C. L. (2021). Parasocial Interaction, the COVID-19 quarantine, and digital age media. Hu Arenas 4, 413-429.
Jenol, A. (2020). K-Pop fans’ identity and the meaning of being a fan (Doctoral dissertations). Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: University of Malaysia.
Jenol, N. A., & Pazil, N. H. (2020). Escapism and Motivation: Understanding K-pop Fans Well-being and Identity. Malaysian Journal of Society and Space, 16(4), 336-347.
Khan, M., Ashraf, M., Seinen D., Khan K., & Laar, R. (2021). Social media for knowledge acquisition and dissemination: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on collaborative learning driven social media adoption. Front. Psychol. 12, 648253.
Kharel, M., Sakamoto, J., Carandang, R. J., Ulambayar, S., Shibanuma, A., Yarotskaya, E., Basargina, M., & Jimba, M. (2022). Impact of COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on movement behaviours of children and adolescents: a systematic review. BMJ Global Health 2022, 7, e007190.
Kim, J. & Song, H. (2016). Celebrity’s self-disclosure on Twitter and parasocial relationships: A mediating role of social presence. Computers in Human Behavior, 62, 570-577.
Kim, J. Y., Lee, J., & Lee, M. Y. (2018). Purchasing behavior of K-pop idol goods consumers in Korea. Journal of Fashion and Business, 22(6), 1-13.
Kim, P. & Hutt, E. (2021). K-pop as a social movement: Case study of BTS and their fandom ARMY. Journal of Student Research, 10(3), 1-15.
Kurtin, K. S., O’Brien, N. F., Roy, D., & Dam, L. (2019). Parasocial Relationships with Musicians. The Journal of Social Media in Society, 8(2), 30-50.
Lacap, J. P., Cruz, M. R., Bayson, A. J., Molano, R., & Garcia, J. G. (2024). Parasocial relationships and social media interactions: building brand credibility and loyalty. Spanish Journal of Marketing - ESIC, 28(1), 77-97.
Leary, M. R., Kelly, K. M., Cottrell, C. A., & Schreindorfer, L. S. (2013). Construct validity of the need to belong scale: Mapping the nomological network. Journal of Personality Assessment, 1-15.
Liu, P. (2022). Parasocial relationship in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: A moderated mediation model of digital media exposure on political trust among Chinese young people. Computers in Human Behavior, 141, 107639.
Lu, S. & Zhang, R. (2019). The influence of Japanese anime on the values of adolescent (pp. 272-274). In Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Humanities Science and Society Development (ICHSSD 2019). Xiamen, China: Atlantis Press.
Madison, T. P., Porter, L. V., & Greule, A. (2016). Parasocial compensation hypothesis: Predictors of using parasocial relationships to compensate for real-life interaction. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 35(3), 258-279.
Malik, Z. & Haidar, S. (2021). English language learning and social media: Schematic learning on Kpop Stan twitter. E-Learning and Digital Media, 18(4), 361-382.
Malik, Z., & Haidar, S. (2020). Online community development through social interaction – K-pop stan twitter as a community of practice. Interactive Learning Environments, 1-19.
McCallum, S., Calear, A., Cherbuin, N., Farrer, L., Gulliver, A., Shou, Y., Dawel, A., & Batterham, P. (2021). Associations of loneliness, belongingness, and health behaviors with psychological distress and well-being during COVID-19. Journal of Affective Disorders Reports, 6, 100214.
Meese, K. (2021). You and I: Parasocial Relationships, Social Media, and Fan Labor in the One Direction Fandom (Doctoral dissertation) New York, USA: Pace University.
Mellor, D., Stokes, M., Firth, L., Hayashi, Y., & Cummins, R. (2008). Need for belonging, relationship satisfaction, loneliness, and life satisfaction. Personality and Individual Differences, 45(3), 213-218.
Mitrofan, F. (2020). Cancelling the Callouts: The ‘Dramageddon’of 2019 and the Effects of Cancel Culture Online (Master’s thesis). Uppsala, Sweden: Uppsala University.
Mueller, T. S. (2021). Blame, then shame? Psychological predictors in cancel culture behavior. The Social Science Journal, 1-14.
Nolan, K. (2021). Fear of missing out: performance art through the lens of participatory culture. International Journal of Performance Arts and Digital Media, 17(2), 234-252.
O’Donovan, R. (2016). ‘To boldly go where no psychologist has gone before”: effects of participation in fandom activities on parasocial relationships. Journal of Applied Psychology and Social Science, 2(1), 41-61.
Onyeaka, H., Anumudu, C. K., Al-Sharify, Z. T., Egele-Godswill, E., & Mbaegbu, P. (2021). COVID-19 pandemic: A review of the global lockdown and its far-reaching effects. Science progress, 104(2), 368504211019854.
Palinkas, L. A., Aarons, G. A., Horwitz, S., Chamberlain, P., Hurlburt, M., & Landsverk, J. (2011). Mixed method designs in implementation research. Administration and Policy in Mental Health, 38(1), 44-53.
Pew Research Center. (2015). The whys and hows of generations research. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2015/09/03/the-whys-and-hows-of-generations-research/.
Pickett, C., Gardner, W. L., & Knowles, M. L. (2004). Getting a cue: The need to belong and enhanced sensitivity to social cues. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30(9), 1095-1107.
Pornsakulvanich, V., & Tongnok, T. (2022). The influence of social media motivation and parasocial interaction on attitudinal and behavioral engagement among social media users. Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences Studies, 438-451.
Purnamaningsih, P., & Rizkalla, N. (2020). The Role of parasocial interaction on consumers’ intention to purchase beauty products. Revista CEA, 6(12), 13-27.
Roberts, J. A., & David, M. E. (2019). The Social Media Party: Fear of Missing Out (FoMO), Social Media Intensity, Connection, and Well-Being. International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 36(4), 386-392.
Schnarre, P., & Adam, A. (2017). Parasocial Romances as Infidelity: Comparing Perceptions of Real-Life, Online, and Parasocial Extradyadic Relationships. Journal of the Indiana Academy of the Social Sciences, 20(1), 82-93.
Schumacher, A. (2014). Talking circles for adolescent girls in an urban high school: A restorative practices program for building friendships and developing emotional literacy skills. CA, USA: SAGE Open.
See, A. (2021). Rodrigo duterte is using one of the world’s longest COVID-19 lockdowns to strengthen his grip on the Philippines. Retrieved from https://time.com/5945616/covid-philippines-pandemic-lockdown/.
Smutradontri, P., & Gadavanij, S. (2020). Fandom and identity construction: an analysis of Thai fans’ engagement with Twitter. Humanit Soc Sci Commun, 7(177), 1-13.
The Manila Times. (2019). Welcome to gen Z: How to engage the new generation of learners. Retrieved from https://www.manilatimes.net/2019/05/09/campus-press/welcome-to-gen-z-how-to-engage-the-new-generation-of-learners/551407.
Tinaliga, B. (2018). “At war for OPPA and identity”: Competitive performativity among Korean-Pop fandoms (Master’s thesis). San Francisco,USA: University of San Francisco
Tkácová, H., Pavlíková, M., Jenisová, Z., Maturkanic, P., & Králik, R. (2021). Social media and students’ well-being: An empirical analysis during the Covid-19 pandemic. Sustainability, 2021(13), 10442.
Tugtekin, U., Barut Tugtekin, E., Kurt, A., & Demir, K., (2020). Associations between fear of missing out, problematic smartphone use, and social networking services fatigue among young adults. Social Media + Society, 6(4), 205630512096376.
Tukachinsky, R., Walter, N., & Saucier, C. J. (2020). Antecedents and effects of parasocial relationships: A meta-analysis. Journal of Communication, 70(6), 868-894.
Vonderohe, B. M. (2016). Twitter’s role in the disclosure of parasocial relationships. UW-L Journal of Undergraduate Research, 19, 1-15.
Wert, B. (2021). Fandom in the digital age: Examining parasocial relationships between fans and music artists on instagram’s (Bachelor’s thesis). Oregon, USA: Portland University.
Wilson, S., Dempsey, C., Farnham, F., Manze, T., & Taylor, A. (2018). Stalking risks to celebrities and public figures. BJPsych Advances, 24(3), 152-160.
Wong, A., Ho, S., Olusanya, O., Antonini, M., & Lyness, D. (2021). The use of social media and online communications in times of pandemic COVID-19. Journal of the Intensive Care Society, 22(3), 255-60.
World Health Organization. (2021). Social media & COVID-19: A global study of digital crisis interaction among Gen Z and Millennials. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/social-media-covid-19-a-global-study-of-digital-crisis-interaction-among-gen-z-and-millennials.
Yan, Q., & Yang, F. (2021). From parasocial to parakin: Co-creating idols on social media. New Media & Society, 23(9), 2593-2615.