Chapter 1: Introduction

ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL BEHAVIOR: FANATICISM

A Research Paper Presented to

The faculty of the English Resource Center

School of Multimedia Arts

Asia Pacific College

Magallanes, Makati

In Partial Fullfilment

of the Requirements for the Course

ERESRIT – Research Writing

Andrea Patricia L. Robite

April 2014

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

Mariah Carey is a world renowned diva. The term diva was derived from the Italian language and was earlier used for female deity or in basic sense, a goddess. Today, it's been given many definitions such as: a celebrated female singer, a usually glamorous and successful female performer or personality, a woman regarded as temperamental or haughty. Mariah can easily be defined by all of these. As to being a well-known female singer and a successful one at that, Mariah is surely on top of her game. Personality wise, she is also deemed as arrogant and cocky, but that's part of being a diva.

It is obvious how Mariah acts in public since there are such discussions about her but it does not end there. She also happens to act like a diva, even at home. On an article “Nick Cannon Says Mariah Carey Is A 'Diva' When It Comes To Changing Diapers” by Jessica Cumberbatch Anderson from huffingtonpost.com, it appears that Nick Cannon, Mariah's husband, was interviewed on Anderson Live about the matter. Jessica wrote “When the newsman asked who changes the most diapers, Cannon's response was perhaps no surprise. "Me," Cannon replied, adding, "I mean we all do it, but for some reason I get that duty a little bit more."”. Coming from her own husband, there is no doubt on how much of a diva Mariah Carey really is. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/14/nick-cannon-mariah-carey-diapers-video_n_2129648.html#slide=1757227)

Mariah has narcissistic personality traits. It is a very known fact that Mariah can be a little cocky sometimes. What people don't know is that she only does those things to make humor out of it. Yes, acting like a self-conceited, ego filled diva has been a huge a part of Mariah's image but does that necessarily mean that she is a narcissistic person?

In the researcher's quest to find the answer to that question, the researcher read the article "18 Signs You're Dealing With A Narcissist" by Amanda L. Chan from huffingtonpost.com. It says that it is possible to have some of the traits a narcissist has without having a clinically diagnosed narcissistic personality disorder. There is a specific range in narcissism. Most people are in the middle and some with extreme cases, go overboard. Among the 18 signs, Mariah got 9 out of 18. Even-though she is energetic and confident, she tends to hide them by showing that she doesn't care or she puts it out in humor. With this, Mariah Carey appears less cocksure and narcissistic than she actually is. It might be confusing for some but, the truth is, Mariah Carey does not have a Narcissistic Personality Disorder. She only has a narcissistic personality which is not an extreme case and shouldn't really be taken seriously.

"But sometimes the signs of narcissism are a little more nuanced. They're not always as obvious as media depictions would have you believe. And yes, it's possible to have some traits of narcissism without having full-blown, clinically diagnosed narcissistic personality disorder, which is when narcissism starts to have a serious, negative impact on everyday life and relationships." said Amanda. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/04/signs-of-narcissism_n_4696772.html)

Mariah suffers from extreme workaholism. As an artist, Mariah has always been so dedicated to working in this field. If she had the need to not sleep for two weeks, she does it with the inability to stop herself from working so hard. In the unforgettable summer of 2001, the singer suffered what was described as an emotional breakdown after a two-week whirlwind tour to promote her first movie, Glitter.

An article called “Mariah Carey Had 'Breakdown,' Her Publicist Says - Pop singer, hospitalized for a week, is undergoing psychiatric care.” by Brian Hiatt from mtv.com said “While juggling a video shoot, a recording session and a whirlwind publicity schedule in May, Carey told MTV News that the non-stop pace was getting to her.

"I'm honestly really, really delirious and stressed out and overworked and doing too much," she said. "I haven't slept in like two weeks and that's an important detail for you to know." If she hadn't been so busy, Carey said, she'd be "crying on the floor." "It's an insane time in my life. It's crazy," she said.” (http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1445918/mariah-carey-had-breakdown.jhtml)

Mariah is an insecure woman. Believe it or not, a self-centered diva like Mariah Carey has disproportionate concerns or anxieties about herself - appearance mostly - or "complexes" as we call it. First is of course, being born in a bi-racial family, second is her consciousness about the left side of her face. She never allows anyone to photograph her from that side ever since. This peculiar demand of hers got people wondering "Why not?", when clearly, she looks gorgeous in any perspective.

Only after reading this article "Self-Conscious In Front Of The Camera: Are You Obsessed With Highlighting Your Good Side?" by Charing Ball from madamenoire.com, can the researcher learn about the back story of her strange complex. Mariah said, herself, that back when she first started in the industry - she was only 19 at that time - someone from her agency drilled into her head that her left side is her "bad side" and that she should never let anyone take pictures of her from that side. It definitely affected her and made her struggle with this idea embedded inside of her. “There is a larger point here that involves more than pointing and laughing hysterically at this poor, poor soul known to the world as Mariah Carey. In fact, this bit of humanity from Carey makes me appreciate her even more.” Charing Ball said. (http://madamenoire.com/254397/self-conscious-in-front-of-the-camera-are-you-obsessed-with-highlighting-your-good-side/)

All the points mentioned above only contribute to the fact that there are a lot of downsides in being a celebrity. The researcher observes that despite Mariah Carey's negative attributes, people still like her. Therefore, having background information on the psychology of a fan will provide the readers insights on celebrity culture and its side effects. Other than exploiting the dark side of being a celebrity, the purpose of this paper is to explain the reason behind celebrity worshiping.

B. Statement of the Problem

This study aims to answer the question:

1. What is the reason behind celebrity worshiping?

C. Significance of Study

Students taking up Psychology and Sociology.The aim of this paper is to study the psychology behind a fan's dedication to celebrities. This paper will give insights to what happens inside a fan's mind. It helps psychology students understand the human brain more.

Professors teaching Sociology. Since a huge percentage of the human population is heavily involved with their own “fandoms”, being part of a certain “fandom” should be considered as a lifestyle by now. This paper explains that this cultural phenomenon is not a passive matter. The aim of this paper is to give sociology professors an idea of what is going on with most of the people today.

Celebrity worshipers and people involved within a fandom. This research will help these people to understand themselves more. They can gain realizations and insights after reading this paper.

Future Researchers. This research paper will be a huge help for future researchers who plan to do further research on the topic. They may use this paper as an informational basis especially in the fields of psychology and sociology.

D. Scope and Delimitation

This study is focused on the Mariah Carey fandom, specifically. Since, Mariah is a prominent figure in the industry and is known for being conceited, arrogant and hard to deal with. It is normal for celebrities to have this certain attitude but for some reason people still notice and focus more on Mariah's diva fits and only see the bad about her. Despite that, people still like her. The main focus of this research paper is to dwell deeper into the psychology of a fan. This paper aims to answer questions such as “Why do people worship celebrities?” and “What do they like about them?”

The researcher may site other celebrities and instances for emphasizing points but will not be digging further on those matters anymore as they are not that important.

E. Material and Methods

This paper will be using blogs, articles and online research papers from only professional perspectives as to these are scientific and are based on expert views. Only facts and real life happenings will be stated. Personal views, biases and untrusted references and non-professional opinions will not be included.

This paper will focus on the explanation of data as to interconnecting scientific data with the topic.

F. Definition of Terms

Fan. a dedicated being of a certain sport, tv series, celebrity, etc.

Fandom. a community of fans; the state or attitude of being a fan

Fanaticism. wildly excessive or irrational devotion, dedication, or enthusiasm. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/fanaticism)

Psychology. – the science of the mind or of mental states and processes; study of the human or animal brain (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/psychology)