First Advisor

Ian Lowrie

Date of Award

5-24-2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Communication Studies and University Honors

Department

Communication

Subjects

Mass media -- Psychological aspects, Young women -- Psychology, Fans (Persons) -- Psychology, Celebrities in popular culture -- Psychological aspects, Interpersonal relations, Communication

DOI

10.15760/honors.788

Abstract

This research examines young women’s experiences with parasocial relationships (PSR) and how they use media in relation to their PSRs. I intended to determine if young women experienced romantic (PSRR) and platonic PSR in different ways with different goals, if PSR/PSRR impacted young women’s beliefs and behaviors, how PSR used social media in relation to their PSR, and if nonfictional and fictional media figures resulted in different goals for the PSR. I recruited Portland State University students who were women between the ages of 18 and 30 for a focus group and follow-up interviews on the subject of their PSRs. I found that young women’s PSRs reflected Ball-Rokeach’s media dependency goals of orientation, understanding, and play, and that PSRs allowed young women to fulfill what Horton and Wohl refer to as their enacted roles.

Rights

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/29078

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