Para-kin relationships between fans and you can idols: good qualitative data from fans’ reasons for buying idol-dolls

Goal

The purpose of this study will be to have a look at just how “mom fans” effect on the current designs away from parasocial relationship anywhere between fans and you can idols and get higher wisdom to your motivations hidden the latest purchase of idol dolls. At the same time, of the including the feel and you may views of men idol admirers, the analysis aims to help you broaden new comprehension of partner choices and you may promote understanding of the fresh motivations driving idol-toy consumption.

Design/methodology/method

Providing idol-toy consumers as the research items, this study presented textual study plus-depth interview to understand more about fans’ motives for purchasing idol dolls.

Conclusions

Idol doll orders is driven of the psychological connection, instance certainly mother admirers whom attempt to expose a feeling of manage and keep maintaining a father or mother–child dating. As well, to get idol dolls may also serve as a good disguise to have girlfriend admirers to hide its personal hopes and dreams about their idols. Also, idol dolls act as semiotic identifiers, drawing particularly-oriented fans and you will putting on society recognition. It should be listed that male idol fans, who will be experienced deviant regarding the masculine normative, face analysis in feminine-controlled communities, trying to find after that proof authenticity.

Basic ramifications

This study encourages knowing the reasons behind idol-toy instructions and certainly will let advertisers for the catering toward psychological requires of fans, including mommy admirers, of the developing and income dolls that resonate making use of their wanted sense off attachment.

Societal implications

By accepting and centering on the good regions of enthusiast points, this study results in the new lingering process of de–demonization and you may normalization out-of fandom. Additionally, this study also aims to help you donate to an even more full skills of your own problems and psychological need of one’s Chinese more youthful age group.

Originality/really worth

This research examines this new under-explored mom-enthusiast group’s psychological need and their motives of shopping for idol-dolls. Additionally understands the latest line of point of views and you will experience regarding men idol fans, taking a brand new and you can unique advice with the idol-doll consumption.

step one Inclusion

” tabindex=”0″> considering celebrities’ appearance was basically sold because a different sort of setting to own Chinese fans to talk about its solid affection due to their dear idols, leading to producing an alternative Chinese fandom community. On Weibo (perhaps one of the most preferred social network networks when you look at the China), the internet society to own idol-doll-founders, customers, and you will idol fans presently has accumulated over 460,000 supporters that’s extremely feminine-reigned over. With this system, it’s quite common enthusiasts, who’s a vast line of idol dolls, to share adorable photos and you may show their knowledge into the dressing and applying cosmetics on their “babies.” Depending on the newest individual report, one of several idol-doll members, the new blog post-2000 generation represents the greatest proportion, getting 43 %, followed closely by the latest post-1995 age group ranking second, having an amount on twenty-six % (“2021 Cotton fiber Toy Players Notion Declaration” 2021). Therefore, Age group Z, some one, somebody born between your late 1990’s and the early 2010s (Priporas mais aussi al. 2020), positively activates with idol-toy orders courtesy interactive social networking networks.

On the point in time off participatory fandom and you may lover discount, fans’ use choice as well as their thought relationship with idols have become sufferers off academic lookup. Ways admirers relate to a-listers might have been defined as parasocial interaction-brand new nonreciprocal, fictional telecommunications ranging from admirers and you can news personae (Liebers and Schramm 2019; Yan and Yang 2021). Nowadays, fans definitely entering the latest parasocial matchmaking fantasize on the an almost kinship that have idols, provided that they could manage, or at least has actually a noticeable level of impact on the idols. For the Chinese social media, there can be a trend where admirers, especially ladies, consider themselves as idols’ parents, aunts, or sisters. If you’re earlier in the day studies have generally examined parasocial dating considering heterosexual norms and you may fans’ close aspirations throughout the idols (i.e., “girlfriend/wife admirers” regarding idols), little has been known regarding “mommy fans”,“Mom fans,” refer to admirers (normally feminine admirers) https://kissbrides.com/sv/lettiska-brudar/ that happen to be co-cultivating idols/a-listers as their older female members of the family. They claim themselves just like the mommy of the idol and are also indulgent so you’re able to idols, delivering them while the lovely, innocent kids who want their additional care (Yan and Yang 2021).