Shippers and Kinnies: Re-conceptualizing Parasocial Relationships with Fictional Characters in Contemporary Fandom

Abstract

The current work explores emerging patterns of parasocial relationships with fictional characters within contemporary fandom communities. This article introduces terms used in fandoms to further explicate and expand on existing parasocial relationship scholarship. Further, the current work provides a comprehensive taxonomy of the motivations for entering a parasocial relationship with a fictional character, namely factors of character appeal. We aim to provide a contemporary perspective on parasocial relationships in fandom spaces by 1) introducing fan-generated terms to define and delineate these parasocial relationships, and 2) explicating our taxonomy of what factors make characters appealing to fans. Ultimately, we aim to normalize the parasocial phenomena that occur within fandom spaces by bridging the gap between the terms used in academia and the terms used in fandom, thereby affording greater opportunities for in-depth research into fandom phenomena.