A Study on Korean Drama Viewers in the Context of Parasocial Interaction Theory

Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry & Psychology Vol.8 Issue.1

Doi:10.35365/ctjpp.26.1.08

RESEARCH ARTICLE / ARAŞTIRMA YAZISI

A Study on Korean Drama Viewers in the Context of Parasocial Interaction Theory

Parasosyal Etkileşim Kuramı Bağlamında Kore Dizileri İzleyicilerine Yönelik Bir Araştırma

Zeynep Nihan Bakır¹, Ekin Bahar İlik², Ahmet Can Akgün³

Abstract:

The proliferation of digital platforms has enabled popular culture media texts to reach much wider audiences. In this context, television series have become a significant tool for communicating with viewers. While the narrative structures of dramas attract large audiences, fictional characters create strong impressions and contribute to the formation of intensive fan cultures. Korean dramas, which originated in South Korea and rapidly became a global phenomenon, have generated a broad audience and a strong fan community in Türkiye. This study examines the effects of Korean dramas on viewers, the emerging fan culture, and its position within the framework of parasocial interaction. It focuses on the forms of communication viewers establish with fictional characters, the reflections of these interactions on self-perceptions, and identification practices. In this qualitative study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 16 participants who regularly watched Korean Dramas between May 1 and June 1, 2025. Ethics committee approval was obtained, and informed consent was secured from all participants. The findings indicate that media-constructed characters foster parasocial interaction and strengthen viewers’ identification processes. Participants were found to associate these characters with their own life experiences, develop emotional closeness to them, and occasionally derive motivation, inspiration, or guidance from them. The study concludes that characters fictionalized in Korean dramas are internalized through an interpretive process and that this interaction carries a massifying dynamic. The findings are discussed within the literature on parasocial interaction, contributing particularly to discussions on how digital platforms reinforce audience engagement and reshape the structure of fan culture.

Keywords: Parasocial Interaction, Korean Dramas, Fan Culture, Digital Media, Identification

¹Independent Researcher.

²Atlas University, Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture, Department of Visual Communication Design, İstanbul, Türkiye,

³Avrasya University, Faculty of Communication, Department of Visual Communication Design, Trabzon, Türkiye.

Address of Correspondence/Yazışma Adresi: Zeynep Nihan Bakır, Patlangıç Neighborhood, Özyuvam Vadi Residence, Block I, No: 3, Fethiye, Muğla, Türkiye, E-mail: [email protected].

Date of Received/Geliş Tarihi: 04.07.2025, Date of Revision/Düzeltme Tarihi: 29.12.2025, Date of Acceptance/Kabul Tarihi:20.01.2026, Date of Online Publication/Çevirimiçi Yayın Tarihi: 25.03.2026

Citing/Referans Gösterimi: Bakır, Z.N., İlik, E.B. & Akgün, A.C. (2026). A Study on Korean Drama Viewers in the Context of Parasocial Interaction Theory. Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry & Psychology, 8(1), 57-63, Doi:10.35365/ctjpp.26.1.08

© 2026 The Author(s). Published by Cyprus Mental Health Institute / Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry and Psychology (www.ktppdergisi.com). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/