parasocial

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English

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Etymology

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From para- +‎ social, coined by American sociologist Richard Wohl and Donald Horton in 1956.[1]

Adjective

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parasocial (not comparable)

  1. One-sided (especially of a relationship, as for example that between a celebrity and their audience or fans, whom they do do not know).
    a parasocial relationship
    • [2006, Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, editor, Encyclopedia of Children, Adolescents, and the Media, SAGE Publications, →ISBN:
      Donald Horton and R. Richard Wohl coined the term parasocial interaction in 1956 to describe the imaginary interactions between the audience and TV variety show hosts, noting the “seeming face-to-face relationship” that viewers developed []]
    • 2016, Molly Marshall, AQA Psychology Student Guide 3: Issues and debates in psychology, Hachette UK, →ISBN:
      In the past, parasocial relationships occurred predominantly with television or film celebrities, but now these [] celebrities openly share their opinions and activities through various social media outlets such as Twitter and Facebook.
    • 2022 February 13, Otegha Uwagba, “Too close for comfort: the pitfalls of parasocial relationships”, in The Guardian[1]:
      And yet for every creator for whom parasocial relationships are an unintended byproduct of their work, there are many more – influencers, YouTubers, vloggers – who actively cultivate that faux-intimacy with their followers, softening them up so that they might more easily ply their wares, be that waist trainers or make-up brushes.
    • 2023 May 11, Maggie Harrison, “Influencer Creates AI Version of Herself That You Can Rent as a Girlfriend”, in Futurism[2]:
      With the advent of AI chatbots, the ethics of parasocial relationships just keep getting murkier. Introducing: CarynAI, a voice-based chatbot that was trained to mimic a human influencer to become your artificial girlfriend.
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References

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  1. ^ 1956, Donald Horton, R. Richard Wohl, "Mass Communication and Para-social Interaction: Observations on Intimacy at a Distance", Psychiatry, Volume 19, pages 215-29.

Further reading

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