Category Conference Paper

Conference Paper: Theorizing development of parasocial experiences.

Conference Paper

by Riva Tukachinsky, Gayle S. Stever, May 2018

International Communication Association

The manuscript proposes an overarching theoretical model of parasocial experiences including parasocial interactions (PSIs), relationships (PSRs) and attachment (PSA). Building on Knapp’s model of relationship development, the model describes stages of media consumers’ development of PSRs with media figures from initiation (i.e., first encounter with the media persona) to integration (development of secondary attachment). Through synthesis of research across disciplines, the model conceptualizes the relational goals at each stage of the PSR, identifies variables that predict engagement at this level, and describes this stage’s outcomes/effects. PSIs specific to the PSR at each stage are discussed...

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Conference Paper: Social Media and Lifelong Learning for Sustainable Development

Conference Paper

by Lorraine Lander and Gayle S. Stever, March 2017

World Symposium on Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development

The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals cover a broad range of global problems and reaching those goals will require effort and education. Lifelong learning has become an essential part of modern life with rapidly changing technology, globalization, and increased urbanization, as well as environmental changes and the rise of green careers. Given the importance of sustainable development and global changes, it is important to identify effective ways of educating toward the UN’s goals...

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Conference Paper: Bowling Alone? Fandoms as Activist Communities

Conference Paper

by Gayle S. Stever, April 2015

Popular Music Fandom and the Public Sphere

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Conference Paper: What Role Twitter? Celebrity Conversations with Fans

Conference Paper

by Gayle S. Stever, September 2013

International Communication Association, Transforming Audiences Conference

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Conference Paper: Twitter as a Form of Parasocial Interaction: Implications for Parasocial Attachment

Conference Paper

by Gayle S. Stever, September 2013

Transforming Audiences

This article addresses the presence of social media in our culture and the significance of interaction that takes place through social media. Specifically this research calls for a description of social interaction between/among a sample of celebrities and their fans on Twitter. It is a given that fans normally don’t have access to regular social interaction with their favorite celebrities...

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Conference Paper: Fan/Celebrity symbiotic social relationships: A participant-observer ethnography of fan clubs.

Conference Paper

by Gayle. S. Stever, May 2009

International Communications Association: Theme: Keywords in Communication, Chicago, IL, May 22-26, 2009.

Many individuals look for a community of like-minded people with whom to form connections. For some, the media fan community becomes this social network. Contrary to the popular media and some research literature that depicts fan/celebrity interaction as obsessive on the part of the fan and a potential nuisance to the celebrity, studied fan subcultures were characterized by fan/celebrity interaction that was reciprocal and symbiotic, collaborative and mutually beneficial. Observations from 20 years of participant/observer ethnography in multiple fan subcultures will support these concepts and a positive interpretation of fan communities.

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Conference Paper: Fan/Celebrity Symbiotic Social Relationships

Conference Paper

by Gayle S. Stever, May 2009

International Communication Association Chicago 2009

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