Socio-demographics, lifestyles, and consumption frequency of Thai ‘Boys Love’ series content: Initial evidence from Thailand

Abstract

The Thai Boys Love (BL) television series, or Y-series (abbreviation of the Japanese yaoi), have become increasingly popular domestically and internationally. Inspired by Japanese BL, the Y-genre showcases affectionate and intimate romantic relationships between cute, charming boys and/or stylish young men. However, there is a dearth of quantitative research on the Thai Y-series. This study explores the contextual backdrop of the Y-boom phenomenon, as well as the socio-demographic and lifestyle characteristics of its Thailand viewers. Moreover, it investigates the correlation between these characteristics and the frequency of Y-content consumption. A total of 200 Y-viewers completed online questionnaires. Binary logistic regression analysis revealed that two out of nine variables (sexual orientation and following Facebook pages featuring attractive male students or ‘cute-boy pages’) emerged as significant predictors of consuming Y-series content at least once a week. Bisexual and homosexual viewers, irrespective of their gender, exhibited a six-fold and three-fold higher likelihood of consuming Y-series content at least once a week compared to heterosexuals. Furthermore, individuals who followed ‘cute-boy pages’ demonstrated a greater inclination to consume Y-series content compared to others.