With the development of the internet, young adults choose to seek advices from key online influencers (KOLs) rather than turning to their significant others for help (Giles & Maltby, 2004; Svoboda, 2020). The quickly formed virtual and often one-way parasocial relationships (Farivar et al., 2021) can also end rapidly if KOLs’ images collapse due to negative incidents or they simply disappear without proper notice (Maltby et al., 2005). When young viewers realize that the online celebrities whom they admire do not meet their expectations, the trust and dependence they quickly establish may also vanish, and the damage to their emotions and relational values could follow.The purpose of this study is to understand the dissolution process of parasocial relationships between Generation Z and KOLs. Recent studies on parasocial relationships have mostly focused on marketing strategies, emphasizing on how social influencers leverage parasocial relationships to attract their target audience for product consuming (Wu et al., 2016). Based on Hu’s (2023) parasocial dissolution and deterioration, the current study aims to further explore (1) RQ1: How does Generation Z manage the dissolution of their parasocial relationships with KOLs? What are the stages experienced during the dissolution? (2) RQ2: How do Generation Z’s parasocial relationship experiences shape their offline interpersonal development and values? The study will employ the data collection methods of focus groups and in-depth interviews to examine the mutual influences between young adults’ virtual encounters and offline interpersonal connections.

Authors:
Yun-I Yang, Shih Hsin University, Taiwan
Pei-Wen Lee, Shih Hsin University, Taiwan

About the Presenter(s)
Dr. Pei-Wen Lee is currently a Professor at Department of Speech Communication and Social Media / Graduate Institute of Gender Studies at Shih Hsin University in Taipei, Taiwan.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Friday Schedule

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