adjective Internet Slang

parasocial

· adjective · internet

One-sided emotional bond a fan forms with a celeb who has no idea they exist.

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Definitions

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Describes the imaginary intimacy fans feel with celebrities, streamers, podcasters or authors who don't know they exist. Fuelled by Instagram stories and 'just-us' creator energy. Lobbed as a diagnosis when someone's behaviour toward a fave gets unhinged.

“Crying because Taylor Swift didn't follow you back is peak parasocial behaviour.”
by community
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parasocial In A Sentence

Crying because Taylor Swift didn't follow you back is peak parasocial behaviour.

Origin & Usage

Coined by sociologists Donald Horton and R. Richard Wohl in a 1956 paper about TV viewers' relationships with on-screen personalities. Took on a second life on stan Twitter and BookTok as fans started using it self-critically — or as an accusation.

Variants parasocial relationshipparasocial bond
Tags #stan-culture#psychology#fandom#discourse

People Also Ask

What does parasocial mean?

It describes a one-sided emotional bond a fan forms with a celebrity who has no idea they exist.

How do you use parasocial in a sentence?

"Her attachment to the streamer is completely parasocial — he's never even seen her messages."

Where does the term parasocial come from?

It comes from mid-20th-century social science research on the one-sided relationships audiences form with media figures.

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