Parasocial Interaction with K-pop Idols Among Indian Youth

Abstract

The phenomenon of parasocial interaction (PSI) which is commonly understood to be the illusion of an intimate, face-to-face relationship between a media audience and a media persona, in the contemporary world has gained renewed scholarly attention in the context of digital fandoms. The dissertation endeavours to investigate parasocial interaction with K-pop idols among Indian youth, with a particular focus on the role of three antecedent variables namely, social media consumption frequency, duration of K-pop fandom, and idol identification. A quantitative cross-sectional survey design was undertaken with a purposive sample of N = 150 Indian participants aged 18–25 years. Parasocial interaction was measured using the Parasocial Interaction Scale propounded by Rubin et al. (1985).