The rise of social media has brought about a new form of human interaction. Parasocial relationships are commonly found between an influencer and their following. The followers lend their time and interest to a personality while that personality is largely unaware of the individuals that follow them. While they recognize that they have a following, the individual people who follow them are largely faceless. These parasocial relationships exist between all celebrities and their fans to varying degrees of intensity. These relationships are very convenient as they facilitate an easy form of social interaction for the followers by the influencer creating a consistent persona. Even checking your phone during lunch to watch a video or see a photo of a personality you are following is a form of a parasocial relationship. 

These interactions are very comfortable because the personality has modeled their content to be uniform and to evolve gradually, if at all. Influencers typically create close-knit circles with other like-minded influencers. This creates a friend group for followers to gravitate towards. These friend groups are filtered through social media and as a result, aim to produce content that consistently portrays the group positively. This may replace the need for in-person friend groups as well. Instead of worrying about more complex and unpredictable interactions, these personalities will consistently produce a convenient and comfortable sense of socialization. For followers, this means a low-risk interaction that yields a generally positive outcome very consistently.

For students with a heavier workload, parasocial relationships are ideal because of how convenient they are. It is generally more convenient to have a video playing in the background while the student works than to try and finish all their work very quickly in order to go out with friends. While going out with friends is typically more rewarding, it is also a far greater commitment of time and money. I believe that the accessibility and low-risk nature of parasocial relationships increases the likelihood that students in STEM with great workloads will avoid conventional socialization in favor of convenient interactions with cults of personality.

There is a great deal of value in parasocial relationships for their consistency and convenience. However, it is worth considering how they may reduce conventional socialization and how that may have long-term consequences. These personalities often form echo chambers that reduce tolerance towards differing opinions or perspectives. This intolerance can also make socializing more difficult in person, thereby furthering the dependency on the persona. This radicalization lends itself to naturally distancing the individual from their peers.