Chapter 23 Exercises

Exercise 23.1: Mapping Your Own PSR (Individual, 30 minutes)

Identify a media figure — musician, actor, athlete, YouTuber, podcaster — with whom you believe you have a PSR (parasocial relationship). Answer the following:

  1. How long have you been following this person? Estimate the total hours of content you have consumed featuring them.
  2. List five things you "know" about this person's apparent personality, values, or preferences. For each item, identify the source of that knowledge (specific content, interview, social media post, etc.).
  3. Using Rubin and McHugh's (1987) PSI/PSR distinction, describe an example of PSI (a specific moment when you felt social engagement while consuming content featuring this person) and describe your PSR (the background sense of relationship that persists between consumption episodes).
  4. How do you describe this person to friends who don't know them? Do you use the same vocabulary you'd use for a personal acquaintance? Why or why not?
  5. Have you ever felt any of the following: concern when they appeared to be struggling, joy at their good news, disappointment when they made choices you disagreed with? What does this tell you about the depth of your PSR?

Exercise 23.2: Horton and Wohl in 2024 (Analysis, 45 minutes)

Read the following excerpt from Horton and Wohl's 1956 paper (or a summary your instructor provides) and then answer:

  1. Horton and Wohl identified three mechanisms through which parasocial interaction is sustained: direct address, apparent disclosure, and consistency over time. Find one example of each mechanism in a specific piece of digital media content you are familiar with (a YouTube video, an Instagram post, a Weverse update, etc.). Describe each example specifically.

  2. Horton and Wohl argued that the television persona is a "social type" — a recognizable category of person that invites social response. Identify a contemporary digital media persona (YouTube, TikTok, podcast, K-pop, etc.) and describe what "social type" they perform. How does that social type invite parasocial response?

  3. Horton and Wohl assumed one-directional media. Write a 200-word paragraph describing one specific way that social media's apparent two-directionality has changed the phenomenology of parasocial interaction compared to 1956 television. What remains the same? What is genuinely different?

Exercise 23.3: The Social Surrogacy Hypothesis — Evaluate the Evidence (Small Group, 60 minutes)

In groups of 3-4, debate the following question: Are parasocial relationships more likely to function as complements to or substitutes for direct social bonds?

Preparation: - One group member argues for the substitute position (drawing on the social surrogacy hypothesis) - One group member argues for the complement position (drawing on section 23.5 and the ARMY Files case) - One group member presents a synthesis or "it depends" position with specific conditions

After debate, the group writes a 300-word consensus statement that incorporates the strongest arguments from all positions, identifies the conditions under which each position is most likely to be accurate, and notes what additional research would be needed to fully resolve the question.

Exercise 23.4: Mireille Case Analysis (Written, 45 minutes)

Review section 23.4's profile of Mireille Fontaine and answer:

  1. Identify three specific features of Mireille's parasocial relationship with Jimin that are consistent with attachment theory. For each, explain which attachment theory concept is relevant and how Mireille's experience exemplifies it.

  2. Mireille describes her relationship with BTS as "real but not mutual." Unpack this phrase: In what sense is the relationship real? In what sense is it not mutual? Does the non-mutual nature make it less real, or simply differently real?

  3. The chapter argues that Mireille's parasocial relationship with BTS and her real social relationships with ARMY Discord members are complementary rather than competitive. Describe one concrete way that this complementarity operates in her experience — how does the parasocial bond support or generate the social bonds?

  4. What does Mireille's case tell us about the relationship between critical awareness (she knows the relationship is mediated and non-reciprocal) and parasocial experience (she feels genuine connection)? Can you be fully aware that a parasocial relationship is one-sided and still experience it as emotionally meaningful?

Exercise 23.5: Pathological Variants — Case Vignettes (Ethics Discussion, 60 minutes)

Read the following brief vignettes and identify, for each: (a) which parasocial concept(s) apply, (b) whether this represents normal intense PSR or a pathological variant, and (c) what response, if any, seems appropriate.

Vignette A: A fan of a K-pop group feels genuine grief for three days when her favorite member announces he is dating someone. She cries, can't focus at school, and posts on her fan forum: "I know it's irrational but I feel like something was taken from me." After a week, she feels better and posts supportively about the couple.

Vignette B: A fan has begun believing that a YouTuber is sending them personal messages through their video titles and thumbnail choices — that specific combinations of words are meant specifically for them as a way of communicating that the YouTuber knows about them and wants them to make contact.

Vignette C: A fan has spent $4,000 in the past year on an idol's merchandise, has attended 7 concerts on one tour (taking on debt to do so), and reports that their social life has contracted to primarily online interactions with other fans of the same idol. They describe themselves as happy and say the community is the most important thing in their life.

Vignette D: A fan moderates an extremely active fan forum, spending 35 hours per week on moderation and community management. They describe the forum as their most important social space and derive enormous satisfaction from the governance work. They have close friendships with several other moderators whom they have met in person.

Exercise 23.6: Digital Parasocial Architecture Audit (Research Project, 2-3 hours)

Choose one of the following digital platforms and conduct an "audit" of its parasocial architecture:

  • Weverse (BTS or another HYBE artist)
  • YouTube (a creator with 1M+ subscribers who actively engages fans)
  • Twitch (a streamer with active community)
  • Instagram (a celebrity who maintains active engagement)

For your chosen platform and creator/celebrity, document:

  1. Direct address mechanisms: How does the content address viewers/followers directly? List 5 specific examples.
  2. Apparent disclosure: What categories of personal information does the creator/celebrity share? Is it genuinely private or managed "private"? How can you tell?
  3. Consistency mechanisms: How does the platform/creator create consistency over time? (Posting schedules, recurring formats, stable persona elements)
  4. Apparent accessibility: What features create the impression that the creator/celebrity is reachable? List and evaluate 3.
  5. Notification architecture: How does the platform's notification system create the temporal structure of apparent relationship?

Write a 600-word analysis of how this platform's design produces parasocial intensity, and evaluate whether that design is ethically appropriate.