Purpose
The goal of this research is always to take a look at exactly how “mom admirers” affect the present designs regarding parasocial relationships ranging from fans and you may idols also to acquire deeper skills toward motives fundamental the newest acquisition of idol dolls. In addition, of the like the experiences Österrike vacker flicka and views out of men idol fans, the study aims in order to increase this new understanding of enthusiast choices and you may promote comprehension of the fresh new motives riding idol-doll consumption.
Design/methodology/means
Taking idol-toy customers given that look stuff, this research conducted textual data plus in-depth interview to explore fans‘ reasons for buying idol dolls.
Conclusions
Idol doll instructions is actually passionate by the emotional connection, such as among mommy admirers just who seek to expose a sense of control and maintain a mother–child matchmaking. In addition, buying idol dolls also can act as a beneficial disguise to possess girlfriend fans to hide the close desires regarding their idols. Also, idol dolls act as semiotic identifiers, attracting like-inclined fans and wearing area recognition. It should be indexed that male idol fans, who are felt deviant from the male normative, face scrutiny inside the feminine-reigned over communities, trying to find next proof credibility.
Basic implications
This study promotes knowing the reasons at the rear of idol-toy purchases and can assist marketers inside the catering for the mental requires off fans, eg mommy admirers, by creating and you can business dolls you to definitely resonate with their wished experience out of connection.
Social implications
From the accepting and you can targeting the positive areas of partner affairs, this research results in the fresh ongoing procedure of de-demonization and you will normalization from fandom. Additionally, this study along with tries in order to donate to an even more full knowledge of your battles and you may mental need of the Chinese more youthful generation.
Originality/value
This research examines this new around-researched mother-lover group’s mental means as well as their motivations of getting idol-dolls. In addition it acknowledges new distinct views and you can knowledge away from male idol fans, taking a fresh and you will book viewpoint on the idol-toy practices.
step 1 Addition
“ tabindex=“0″> considering celebrities‘ appearance had been offered since yet another means to own Chinese fans to generally share its good love because of their beloved idols, causing the manufacture of a new Chinese fandom community. Towards Weibo (one of the most well-known social networking platforms within the China), the web neighborhood to have idol-doll-creators, buyers, and idol fans presently has accumulated more 460,000 supporters which can be very women-dominated. About program, it’s quite common enthusiasts, that has a vast line of idol dolls, to share lovable pictures and express their feel within the dressing and applying makeup on the “infants.” With regards to the current individual statement, among the many idol-doll users, this new blog post-2000 age group is short for the highest ratio, reaching 43 %, followed closely by the latest article-1995 age bracket ranks 2nd, having a proportion during the twenty six % (“2021 Cotton fiber Toy People Perception Statement” 2021). Thus, Age bracket Z, anybody, people produced between your later 1990’s plus the early 2010s (Priporas et al. 2020), positively engages that have idol-doll purchases owing to interactive social media systems.
On the era from participatory fandom and you can lover cost savings, fans‘ use tastes as well as their thought of reference to idols have become subjects away from informative lookup. Ways fans relate to superstars could have been defined as parasocial interaction-the brand new nonreciprocal, imaginary communication anywhere between admirers and news personae (Liebers and you may Schramm 2019; Yan and you may Yang 2021). In recent years, fans definitely getting into the brand new parasocial dating fantasize from the a close kinship having idols, providing they could manage, or at least possess an evident standard of influence on the idols. With the Chinese social media, you will find a trend where admirers, specifically lady, refer to on their own once the idols‘ moms and dads, aunts, otherwise sisters. Whenever you are previous studies have widely checked out parasocial relationship according to heterosexual norms and you will fans‘ personal ambitions regarding the idols (we.e., “girlfriend/spouse admirers” away from idols), absolutely nothing might have been recognized throughout the “mom fans”,“Mommy fans,” make reference to admirers (generally feminine admirers) that co-fostering idols/superstars as his or her elderly female household members. They say themselves once the mom of the idol and therefore are indulgent so you can idols, bringing all of them due to the fact lovable, simple high school students who are in need of their special care (Yan and you can Yang 2021).
