How Taylor Swift's Engagement Highlights the Rise of 'Parasocial' as a Key Term

Many individuals this year have found themselves feeling a unique bond with a celebrity, a sentiment that many others share.

Such widespread feelings are why 'parasocial' was chosen as 2025's word of the year by the Cambridge Dictionary. This term describes the imagined connection people feel with public figures they haven't met, like entertainers or fictional characters.

While the notion has been academically discussed for about seven decades, its usage has now exploded in the public sphere, confirmed Colin McIntosh from the Cambridge Dictionary.

McIntosh noted, "Numerous individuals are involved in parasocial engagements, with even more people fascinated by this phenomenon. Our data shows increased searches for the term 'parasocial' on our website."

A clear illustration occurred when pop icon Taylor Swift and sports star Travis Kelce's relationship came into the spotlight. Long-time fans felt emotionally tied to Swift's life story despite any personal interaction.

As noted by Simone Schnall from the University of Cambridge, parasocial connections can sometimes become unhealthy.

Schnall explained, "We live in an era where people form intense and unhealthy bonds with online personalities, believing they 'know' them. This can lead to misplaced trust and extreme loyalty, despite these bonds being one-sided."

In an interesting twist, these patterns are now extending to artificial intelligence.

Schnall pointed out, "Many individuals now perceive AI tools like ChatGPT as companions that offer encouragement or therapeutic substitutes, creating a deceptive sense of camaraderie. This mirage can particularly affect younger audiences."

The designation by Cambridge Dictionary coincided with other additions to their lexicon, like internet slang 'skibidi' and 'delulu.'