Intense fandom

Measuring:

• using the celebrity attitude scale CAS
• 17 item scale
• lower scores more individualistic
• higher socres more obsseive

Common or not?

• studies have showed that 1/3 of students scored about the mid points of the three scales; entertainment, intense and pathological (para-social relationships)
• later study showed of a sample of 400 18-47 year olds 15% entertainment, 5% intense 2% pathological

Developmental factors:

• a study of 833 chinese students showed that 'idol worship' was responsiblie for lower levels of self-esteem, work echievemnt and less idnetity achievement
• studies have shows that celeb worship can also effect behavioural representations of poor psychological well-being from the attempts to escape everyday life

Benefits:

• students who worshipped a family memeber or someone who they came into contanct with on a regular basis
• showede higher levels of self esteem, work achievement than those who worshipped tv stars
• as people in our lives can offer advice and tanigable impact

Negavtive consequence

• high profile celeb suicides follow high number of suicides in general population
• when having a pathological relationship with a star by whom is rebellious it can lead to negative consequences

Evolutionary explanation:

• its natural
• our ancestors would of done so when considering the best hunter
• however now we don't hunt so look up to individuals that are famous and have fortune of what we want
• we value those individuals according to how successful they are

• a study that used the BBC tribute page after the deaths of Princess Diana and Jill Dando a BBC presenter
• revelaved the true nature of the celebs para-social relationships that had developed
• messages were left with reference to 'knowing them' and was also seen to say how they were 'taken aback'
• when infact these people did not know them!

stalking invovles repeated and persisten attempts to impose unwanted communication or contanct on another person

Types of stalking:

• 2 types
• 1 in 5 stalkers develop a love or an obession for someone even though they are not in a relationship
• they usually suffer from delusional thought patterns and mental illnesses
• many are unable to build real relationships so they build of their fantasies
• 2nd type is when there has been a previous relationship

• this has been due to the creation of modern technology
• E.G unwanted emails
• report said that over 13% of undergraduate females were stalked in this way
• 15% recieving emails that were harrassing, threatening or insulting
• cyber stalking means that people are anonmyus so therefore it can lead to antisocial behaviour

Imapcts:

• Germany postal survey showed that:

1. women were stalked

2. men were the stalkers

3. it has changed their lifestyle

4. various physical and mental repsones to being stalked

• 56% had been stalked
• 44% developed some kind of anxiety
• 41% had sleep issues
• 28% depression

highlighting that more mental help needs to be given to vicitms

Insercure attachments:

• a study showed that stalkers when compared to a control group and a community group had signifcant more insecure attachments

Tolerance to cyber stalking:

• cyber stalkers can't see the effects of what they are doing to someone
• therfore for to achieve and satisfy their needs they become tolernt to less harmful aspects and can become very extreme

Perception of cyber stalkers:

• cyberstalking is not taken seriously
• students were given a real life report of cyber stalking that was very serious and the person was prosecuted
• however only 30% thought it was stalking behaviours