Running head: #PARASOCIAL INTERACTION: CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS #Parasocial Interaction: Celebrity Endorsements A dissertation submitted to the Kent State University College Of Communication and Information In partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Kristen J. Schroath December 2016 #PARASOCIAL INTERACTION: CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS Dissertation written by Kristen J. Schroath B.A., John Carroll University, 2003 MBA, Kent State University, 2006 PhD, Kent State University, 2016 Approved by _________________________________________________ Federico Subervi, PhD., Chair, Doctoral Dissertation Committee _________________________________________________ Jeffery Fruit, MA, Doctoral Dissertation Committee __________________________________________________ David Robins, PhD., Doctoral Dissertation Committee __________________________________________________ Pamela Grimm, PhD., Doctoral Dissertation Committee Approved by _________________________________________________ Danielle Sarver Coombs, PhD., Chair, Doctoral Studies Committee _________________________________________________ Amy Reynolds, PhD., Dean of the College of Communication and Information #PARASOCIAL INTERACTION: CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS iii Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................................................... iii LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................................... iv LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................................................. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................................ vi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION AND PROBLEM STATEMENT .................................................................... 1 II LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................................................... 6 Foundations of the Parasocial Interaction Framework ......................................... 6 Frequency and its Relationship to Parasocial Interaction ..................................... 8 New Context: Social Media (Facebook and Twitter) ........................................... 10 Fans and the Impact of Perceived Shared Similarities with Media Figures ......... 17 Celebrity Endorsements in Consumer Behavior .................................................. 29 III METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................ 35 Participants .......................................................................................................... 35 Procedures ........................................................................................................... 37 Measures ............................................................................................................. 38 Analysis ................................................................................................................ 40 IV RESULTS ............................................................................................................................ 42 V DISCUSSION ...................................................................................................................... 48 Limitations ........................................................................................................... 53 Future Research ................................................................................................... 54 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 55 APPENDICES ................................................................................................................................................ 61 A: Parasocial Interaction Scale ....................................................................................................... 61 B: Perceived Homophily (similarities) Scale ................................................................................... 62 C: Parasocial Interaction Scale Means and Standard Deviations ................................................... 63 D: Perceived Homophily Scale Means and Standard Deviation .................................................... 64 E: Top Favorite Celebrities ............................................................................................................. 65 F: Additional Questions .................................................................................................................. 66 Tables Two – Four .......................................................................................................................... 72 Tables Five and Six ......................................................................................................................... 73 Table Seven and Eight .................................................................................................................... 74 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................ 77 #PARASOCIAL INTERACTION: CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS iv List of Figures Figure Pages 1. Model One ......................................................................................................................... 5 2. Model Two ....................................................................................................................... 47 3. Age Demographics ............................................................................................................ 71 4. Race Demographics........................................................................................................... 72 #PARASOCIAL INTERACTION: CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS v List of Tables Table Pages 1. Impact of Social Media usage on Parasocial Interaction .................................................. 43 2. Gender and Race ............................................................................................................... 68 3. Gender and Use of Facebook ............................................................................................ 68 4. Gender and Use of Twitter ............................................................................................... 68 5. Race and Use of Facebook ................................................................................................ 69 6. Race and Use of Twitter .................................................................................................... 69 7. Age and Use of Facebook .................................................................................................. 70 8. Age and Use of Twitter ..................................................................................................... 70 #PARASOCIAL INTERACTION: CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS vi Acknowledgements I would like to thank my committee for your support. I would especially thank Dr. Grimm for all of her guidance. I know I would never have finished if it wasn’t for her kindness and time working with me. Also, if it wasn’t for Kirsten and Holly, I would have gone nuts without their support. Thank you to my cohort. If it wasn’t for you guys, I would have given up long ago. You gave me laughter when I needed it. Shoulders to cry on when I needed it. You provided me with so much encouragement. To my twisted sister, you are a rock. I appreciated you for always taking the time to make me feel like I could really do this. To my amazing family who has provided me with so much love and unwavering support. I am so blessed to have you fighting on my side no matter any of the challenges I faced throughout the entire PhD process. You made me feel nurtured and gave me unconditional love. You gave me advice when I needed it. You listened to me when I needed to rant. You were always there when I was feeling inadequate. There are not enough words to tell you how much your love and support has meant to me. I wouldn’t have finished if it wasn’t for your encouragement. I thank you for everything! To my husband, Jared, you have been there through the best and worst of times. You helped me finish when I wanted to give up. Your love is an inspiration and I will always be thankful for your understanding of my tantrums and sharing in my victories. Also, Echo you were so helpful. Always listening and loving me no matter what I did. Lastly, I want to dedicate my dissertation to my father. He was an inspiration. If it wasn’t for him, I would never have started this journey I wish he were here to see me finish. I know it would have meant so much to him. Even though he is not here with us now, I know he’s smiling down on me and willing me to finish. #PARASOCIAL INTERACTION: CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS 1 Chapter One Introduction and Problem Statement On May 6, 2004, over 51 million people watched the final episode of Friends, which aired for ten years (Associated Press, 2004). After that final episode aired, viewers began to feel a sense of loss, distress, and even sadness. The viewers were showing the same symptoms as if they had just broken up with a partner or experienced the loss of a close friend or family member. What could cause this strange phenomenon of experiencing such strong emotions from simply