A Social Identity Perspective of Personality Differences between Fan and Non-Fan Identities

In three studies of fan communities we examined differences in the Big Five personality traits between fans’ personal and fan identities. In all three studies, self-identified furries completed a measure of the Big Five personality traits for both their personal and furry identity. In Study 1, furries were found to rate all five dimensions higher when referring to their furry (vs. personal) identity. In Study 2 we replicated these results and further found that the effect was not limited to furries: sport fans also reported different personality ratings when referring to their fan or personal identity. In Study 3, we again replicated the results while testing predictors of personality differences between salient identities. A path model showed that felt connection to one’s fandom identity predicted greater frequency of fandom identity salience, which, in turn, predicted greater personality disparity between identities. Taken together, the results suggest the role of the social identity perspective in explaining inconsistencies in personality

Behind Closed Doors: Hentai Fans’ Perceived Discrimination, Ingroup Identification, and Attitudes toward Subgroups in the Anime Fandom.

Fan groups are communities which develop a shared identity around a specific topic or idea. Hentai fans identify as part of a group which celebrates a medium of illustrated or animated pornography. We examined the associations between hentai fan membership, feelings of ingroup identification, and perceptions of discrimination both toward themselves and other fan groups within the anime community. Hentai fans showed more liking toward other groups but feel more discrimination toward themselves as compared to non-hentai fans, who feel less liking toward other groups and feel less discrimination targeted at their own group. Additionally, hentai fans identify more as fans of hentai than non-hentai fans identify with their respective groups, including anime fans. We also found evidence supporting a serial mediation model wherein higher fandom identification leads to higher feelings of more positive attitudes in fan groups, while feelings of personal discrimination do not correlate with higher positive feelings of prejudice in fan groups. The implications of these results and future directions are also discussed

Behind Closed Doors: Hentai Fans’ Perceived Discrimination, Ingroup Identification, and Attitudes toward Subgroups in the Anime Fandom.

Fan groups are communities which develop a shared identity around a specific topic or idea. Hentai fans identify as part of a group which celebrates a medium of illustrated or animated pornography. We examined the associations between hentai fan membership, feelings of ingroup identification, and perceptions of discrimination both toward themselves and other fan groups within the anime community. Hentai fans showed more liking toward other groups but feel more discrimination toward themselves as compared to non-hentai fans, who feel less liking toward other groups and feel less discrimination targeted at their own group. Additionally, hentai fans identify more as fans of hentai than non-hentai fans identify with their respective groups, including anime fans. We also found evidence supporting a serial mediation model wherein higher fandom identification leads to higher feelings of more positive attitudes in fan groups, while feelings of personal discrimination do not correlate with higher positive feelings of prejudice in fan groups. The implications of these results and future directions are also discussed

"Coming Out" as an Anime Fan: Cosplayers in the Anime Fandom, Fan Disclosure, and Well-Being

In the present study we tested the hypothesis that cosplayers experience greater well-being than non-cosplayers within the anime fandom in part because they are more likely to disclose their fan identity to non-fans. Anime fans indicated whether they engaged in cosplaying or not, and rated the degree to which they disclose their anime fan identity to non-fans, satisfaction with life, self-esteem, and depression. Compared to non-cosplayers, cosplayers reported greater self-disclosure and better well-being across a number of indicators. Mediation analyses revealed that the relationship between cosplaying and well-being was consistently mediated by disclosure, a finding in-line with existing research. These are discussed within the context of existing research, providing both a conceptual replication of past findings from related fandoms (i.e., the furry fandom) while also suggesting a myriad of possible directions for future research on the subject

Motivations of Cosplayers to Participate in the Anime Fandom

We examined differences between cosplaying and non-cosplaying anime fans with regard to their motivation to participate in the anime fandom. Participants, all anime fans, completed scales assessing a myriad of possible motivations for anime fandom participation. Cosplayers rated all of the assessed motivations higher than non-cosplayers. The highest-rated motivations for cosplayers included entertainment, escape from everyday life, belongingness, eustress, and aesthetic beauty. Modest sex differences were also found, as women were more likely than men to cosplay and, even among cosplayers, women reported higher belongingness, family, self-esteem, and escape motivations. With the exception of sexual attraction, however, where men were considerably more motivated by sexual attraction than women, the effect sizes for sex differences were fairly small, suggesting little true difference between male and female cosplayers. The results are discussed in relation to past research examining anime cosplayers

“My Group Is Discriminated against, but I’m Not”: Denial of Personal Discrimination in Furry, Brony, Anime, and General Interest Fan Groups

The authors examined perceived discrimination directed toward one’s fan group and toward oneself in multiple groups of fans. Specifically, furries, bronies, anime fans, and a group of miscellaneous fans completed measures assessing the extent to which they perceived discrimination toward both their fan group and toward themselves. Across all samples, participants reported greater discrimination directed toward their fan group than toward themselves, suggesting denial of personal discrimination. The difference between personal discrimination and fandom discrimination is a reliable one, as suggested by its persistence despite considerable differences between the groups with regard to the level of societal stigma. The implications of these results and future directions for this line of research are discusse