New research published in journal Psychology of popular media provides evidence that people who strongly identify as celebrity ultrafans tend to be female, LGBTQ+, and politically liberal. These highly engaged fans use social media platforms to build communities, share information, and promote the celebrities they love. The findings provide new insights into how young people navigate internet spaces to form identities and find social connections.
The term “stan” originated as a slang combination of the words stalker and fan. It is now widely accepted as a label representing an enthusiastic and dedicated supporter of a particular celebrity, musician or public figure. Celebrity supporters often invest huge amounts of time, energy, and emotion into their fans.
For these people, being a Stan is often a core part of their personal identity. They are known for their advanced use of social media to organize events, create digital art, and even fundraise for social justice movements. Pop stars like Taylor Swift and Korean pop music groups like BTS are famous for their huge online presence and cultural influence.
Tara Marshall, associate professor of social psychology and health, aging, and society at McMaster University, said the idea for the project came directly from her team. “I don’t see myself as endorsing anyone or anything other than the TV show ‘Survivor,'” Marshall said. “This article’s co-authors, Vanya Wu and Zoya Pal, are both self-proclaimed K-pop star stans and thought it would be fun to explore stans’ identities, values, and motivations in our research.”
Marshall noted that personal experience served as the starting point for his academic inquiry. “So I think it confirms the old adage that ‘research is my own search,'” she added. To explore this topic, scientists relied on a concept called uses and gratifications theory. This suggests that people actively seek out specific types of media to satisfy specific psychological needs.
The authors noted that online fan groups often function like digital tribes. They function as organized communities where individuals work toward common goals, share expertise, and form close relationships. This collective action is so powerful that it can sometimes influence the decisions of major entertainment companies.
For example, people may use Internet platforms to satisfy their desire for social interaction, to express their personal identity, or to participate in activities. The researchers wondered if online stan communities might serve just these purposes. They predicted that people from marginalized backgrounds may be particularly attracted to these groups.
Online spaces can provide a safe environment for LGBTQ+ individuals to express their true selves and find a sense of belonging. The authors also expected that women would be more likely to stun, given that many large online fandoms tend to be female-led. Since these fan communities are often organized around progressive social causes, they expected Stan to lean liberal in his political views.
Researchers also investigated the role of mental health literacy. This refers to an individual’s knowledge of mental health symptoms and willingness to seek psychological treatment. Because many modern celebrities openly talk about their personal struggles, the authors suspected that fans might learn from these revelations and develop more supportive and informed attitudes.
To test these predictions, the scientists designed two separate studies. In the first study, researchers focused specifically on Twitter, a platform historically known as a major hub for fan communities. The sample included 407 participants with an average age of approximately 19 years.
Most of these participants were Canadian university students who completed surveys in exchange for course credit. Some participants were directly recruited through posts on Twitter. The researchers required all participants to be at least 18 years old and active on the platform, meaning they logged in at least every few days.
The survey asked participants whether they identified themselves as members of Stan Twitter. The survey defines Stan Twitter as a community of users who interact with each other and post content related to pop culture figures they admire. Participants also completed several psychological assessments. One was the Mental Health Literacy Scale, which measures an individual’s knowledge of mental health disorders, where they can seek help, and the level of stigma against mental illness.
Participants were asked how many days per day and per week they use their accounts. They were also asked to elaborate on specific roles they have taken on within fan communities, such as creating digital art or supporting global trends in a particular topic. Another survey measured political and social beliefs, asking participants to rate their feelings on a variety of traditional and progressive issues.
The researchers also measured participants’ need for social connection on Twitter. This includes asking how well you feel like you fit in or feel connected to others on the site. The results of the first survey showed that a significant 35% of participants identified themselves as members of stan Twitter.
“I was surprised by the prevalence of self-identified stans,” Marshall told SciPost. “This is not a fringe group of young people, it’s a significant minority.” These individuals most frequently reported the impact of musicians, especially K-pop artists. The data reveals that stans are significantly more likely to be female and LGBTQ+ compared to non-stans.
Data shows that Stan spends a significant amount of time online, spending an average of about two hours a day on his dedicated fan account. My main motivation for joining these spaces was to be able to stay up to date with my favorite celebrities without feeling judged by others. They also wanted to share information and make friends with like-minded people.
“There’s quite a bit of variation across stans, with some stans more involved in social media communities than others,” Marshall explained. “For example, we found that K-pop supporters used social media to create hate more than non-K-pop supporters. However, they did not necessarily denounce their own celebrities more vehemently.” Ms. Stans also scored higher on mental health literacy and reported a stronger sense of social connectedness, particularly related to her use of Twitter.
When the researchers ran a statistical model to see which factors were the strongest predictors, female identity, LGBTQ+ identity, and Twitter-specific social connections were the most prominent. In the second study, the researchers expanded their focus beyond just Twitter. They wanted to capture behavior across a variety of social media platforms, including Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Snapchat.
This second sample consisted of 472 participants with an average age of approximately 18 and a half years. As in the first study, these participants were primarily undergraduate students at a Canadian university. The survey again asked people if they identified as members of the stan community, but this time they didn’t limit the question to Twitter.
The scientists also asked participants which social media platforms they used for fan activities. To measure political views, participants rated their political ideology on a scale from far left to far right. The researchers also used a measure of global social connectedness.
Unlike the first study, which only asked about connections on Twitter, this scale measured people’s general feelings of belonging and connection in their daily lives. In this second study, 21 percent of participants identified themselves as Stans. The platforms they most frequently used for fan activities were Instagram and TikTok.
Similar to the first study, these fans focused primarily on musicians. Interestingly, this second group had a much lower rate of using Twitter for fan activities. The authors suggest that this may be because Twitter is often associated with more harmful online behavior, such as cyberbullying, which may drive some users to more visually-focused platforms.
This finding once again supports the idea that stances are more likely to be female, LGBTQ+, and politically liberal. However, researchers found no difference between stans and non-stans when it comes to a general sense of social connection. Although Stan feels connected within certain online networks, it seems that he does not necessarily feel more or less connected in his broader offline life.
“While Stans are sometimes portrayed negatively in the media, our research shows that they are a very fun group of people,” Marshall said. “Connecting with other stans through social media may not only provide people with fun and escapism, but also a sense of belonging, positive identity, social purpose, and emotional support. The benefits of stans may be especially pronounced for people from marginalized communities.”
When the authors analyzed all variables together, they found that LGBTQ+ identity and liberal political views were the most robust predictors of being a Stan across all platforms. In this second study, female identity was a slightly weaker predictor. The researchers suggest that this may be because non-female participants used visual platforms such as Instagram and TikTok for fan activities in the same way as female participants.
These findings are often misinterpreted as evidence that participating in online fan communities can make people more liberal or change their sexual identity. In the current study, only snapshots in time were taken. It’s entirely possible that people who already hold liberal views will be drawn to spaces that simply promote social action.
Another limitation is the specific demographics of the participants. The sample relied heavily on young Canadian university students. Canadian students are more likely to hold socially progressive views than students in politically divided or conservative countries.
Fans living in other parts of the world may be hesitant to openly identify with progressive politics or marginalized groups. They may fear negative attention or harassment from others. Cultural differences can also have a big impact on how people interact with celebrities online.
For example, people from individualistic cultures often value face-to-face communication and may be more open to inciting online arguments and wars. In contrast, fans of collectivistic cultures may join these communities to gather information rather than for political action or public debate. Future research should attempt to survey older adults and individuals from a broader range of countries.
Scientists can also follow participants over time to see how their habits evolve. “We would like to conduct a longitudinal study on stan to learn more about who is drawn to the stan community and how their values, motivations, and behaviors are influenced by stan involvement,” Marshall explained.
“I also want to explore the role of stunning in romantic relationships. What are the outcomes of relationships between Stan partnered with Stan and Stan partnered with someone other than Stan?” she added. “I’m looking forward to further exploring the differences between standdoms, and the differences between stans and people who identify more as fans than stans.”
The study, “Who Endorses Celebrities on Social Media? The Role of Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Political Ideology,” was authored by Tara C. Marshall, Vanya Wu, and Zoya Pal.
