Parasocial Interaction and Beyond: Media Personae and Affective Bonding

Abstract

Abstract In research covering media entertainment, media effects, and media psychology, many concepts denote the state of viewers in response to media personae in a way that resembles human–human interaction. One such concept is parasocial interaction (PSI). This entry positions PSI in its original academic context of the 1950s, when mass communication emerged as a new discipline. Central to the notion of PSI is how the persona is defined; this is also discussed within its original academic context, with further reflections on how it has been used in subsequent studies. Thus far, media personae have been evaluated using a dimensional view. Discrepancies with media figures presented through sophisticated new technology are reviewed in the context of contemporary mediated communication. From there, the entry summarizes findings into an up‐to‐date media psychological approach to explaining how viewers become affectively attached to media figures: A theory of affective bonding. The perspective is the experiences of the media user rather than the media's techniques, and may jumpstart future research and novel hypotheses.

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