SOCIAL SURROGACY HYPOTHESIS

Americans watch anywhere between 5-10 hours of tv per day

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IS WATCHING TV SUCH A BAD THING?

• Children who watch 10 or more hours of tv per week, suffer academically
• Watching tv decreases the metabolic rate of children
• Watching tv is linked to obesity and heart disease
• It can hinder our ability to think
• It may influence negative social behavior

"A number of technological advances are designed not to directly fulfill evolved needs, but rather to deceive our mind into believing that some needs have been fulfilled"
~Steven Pinker

DEFICITS OF LONELINESS

• Lonely people report higher levels of perceived stress
• Loneliness destroys the quality and efficiency of sleep
• Loneliness raises levels of circulating stress hormones
• Increases risk of early death
• Increases chances of developing dementia

(A) Increased activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) during exclusion relative to inclusion. (B) Increased activity in the right ventral prefrontal cortex (RVPFC) during exclusion relative to inclusion.

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Based on evidence that social connections can buffer against feelings of rejection, commonplace technologies such as books, music, video games, and tv, can provide the experience of belonging via a one-way parasocial relationship.

When thinking about a parasocial relationship, people become more willing to self-disclose, show more empathy and demonstrate social facilitation effects.

Extensive anecdotal evidence suggests that people commonly react to the end of a tv series in much the same way as if it were the end of a relationship.

A study by Mar and Oatley showed that one of the core functions of narratives is to mentally simulate social interactions, potentially allowing the person to acquire more sophisticated social skills and abilities for subsequent social interactions.

Those low in trust prefer parasocial activities when the costs of a friendship are too high.

STUDY #1

STUDY #2

STUDY #2 CONT.

• Activation of belongingness need by recalling a fight
• Control condition was asked to write about objects
• Those reminded of a fight wrote about fav. Tv show
• Those in control condition wrote about any show
• Dependent variable was length of parasocial essay

results

STUDY #3

STUDY #3 CONT.

• Recalling a relationship threat decreases state self esteem and mood
• 3rd study looked at whether thinking about fav. show could buffer against it
• Those writing about non-favored program showed lower self esteem & mood
• Those writing about favorite program showed higher self esteem & mood

WHAT IF IT'S JUST HAPPINESS IN GENERAL?

STUDY #4

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Results showed that those that recalled a parasocial relationship or "fake" relationship, completed fewer words as rejection-related words.

Next time you're feeling lonely, try turning on your tv and enjoy your favorite tv series.

SOURCES

• http://www.cybercollege.com/frtv/frtv030.htm
• http://www.scienceofrelationships.com/home/2014/8/29/parasocial-relationshi...
• http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022103108002412
• http://www.sciencemag.org/content/302/5643/290.long
• http://www.everydayhealth.com/news/loneliness-can-really-hurt-you/