TY - JOUR
T1 - Queer folklore
T2 - Examining the Influence of Fandom on Sexual Identity Development and Fluidity Acceptance Among Taylor Swift Fans
AU - Dajches, Leah
AU - Aubrey, Jennifer Stevens
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 American Psychological Association
PY - 2022/5/5
Y1 - 2022/5/5
N2 - The present study fills a gap in the media entertainment and fan studies literatures with an exploration of media fandom in relation to fans’ sexual identity acceptance. Using a sample of Taylor Swift fans who identify as women (N = 771), we address how fans’ motivations, practices, and oppositional readings of Taylor Swift’s 2020 album, folklore, are related to their sexual identity development as well as their acceptance of fluidity in others’ sexual orientations. Results indicated that eudaimonic motivations to listen to folklore predicted bisexual, demisexual, and pansexual fans’ acceptance of others' sexual orientation fluidity. Further, we examined fans’ “queer shipping,” which occurs when fans imagine two same-gender media persons/characters to be in a romantic relationship. Queer shipping was positively related to fans’ sexual orientation fluiditiy acceptance, mainly through their oppositional reading of the album. Overall, our results differed by sexual identity group, with fan practices being consistently more predictive of sexual orientation fluidity acceptance among heterosexual women.
AB - The present study fills a gap in the media entertainment and fan studies literatures with an exploration of media fandom in relation to fans’ sexual identity acceptance. Using a sample of Taylor Swift fans who identify as women (N = 771), we address how fans’ motivations, practices, and oppositional readings of Taylor Swift’s 2020 album, folklore, are related to their sexual identity development as well as their acceptance of fluidity in others’ sexual orientations. Results indicated that eudaimonic motivations to listen to folklore predicted bisexual, demisexual, and pansexual fans’ acceptance of others' sexual orientation fluidity. Further, we examined fans’ “queer shipping,” which occurs when fans imagine two same-gender media persons/characters to be in a romantic relationship. Queer shipping was positively related to fans’ sexual orientation fluiditiy acceptance, mainly through their oppositional reading of the album. Overall, our results differed by sexual identity group, with fan practices being consistently more predictive of sexual orientation fluidity acceptance among heterosexual women.
KW - eudaimonia
KW - fandom
KW - oppositional readings
KW - queer shipping
KW - sexual identity
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85130589451&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85130589451&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1037/ppm0000408
DO - 10.1037/ppm0000408
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85130589451
SN - 2689-6567
VL - 12
SP - 255
EP - 267
JO - Psychology of Popular Media
JF - Psychology of Popular Media
IS - 3
ER -