{"id":465,"date":"2022-08-03T07:54:48","date_gmt":"2022-08-03T07:54:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mpelembe.net\/?p=465"},"modified":"2022-08-03T07:55:54","modified_gmt":"2022-08-03T07:55:54","slug":"love-island-the-psychological-challenges-contestants-and-viewers-could-face-after-the-show-is-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mpelembe.net\/index.php\/love-island-the-psychological-challenges-contestants-and-viewers-could-face-after-the-show-is-over\/","title":{"rendered":"Love Island: the psychological challenges contestants \u2013 and viewers \u2013 could face after the show is\u00a0over"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rachael Molitor<\/a>, Coventry University<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

The finale of ITV\u2019s Love Island was watched by millions of fans, many commenting live on social media as Ekin-Su C\u00fclc\u00fclo\u011flu and Davide Sanclimenti were awarded the \u00a350,000 prize<\/a>. The four couples who made the final will now leave the Majorca villa where they\u2019ve kissed, cried and cracked on for the past eight weeks. When they enter the outside world, they will be met with massive amounts of attention. <\/p>\n

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Some of this is positive \u2013 lucrative business opportunities, partnerships with popular brands and thousands of new followers on social media. Other attention will be in the form of online abuse and trolling from viewers. <\/p>\n

Love Island (and indeed, all reality television) is an interesting case study in psychology, from the social experiment of isolating people in one house for a period of time, to the relationship between audience and contestant. The blurred line between reality and fiction creates a strong fan attachment to the show, but also contributes to mental health issues for contestants themselves.<\/p>\n

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This article is part of Quarter Life<\/a><\/strong>, a series about issues affecting those of us in our twenties and thirties. From the challenges of beginning a career and taking care of our mental health, to the excitement of starting a family, adopting a pet or just making friends as an adult. The articles in this series explore the questions and bring answers as we navigate this turbulent period of life.<\/em><\/p>\n

You may be interested in:<\/em><\/p>\n

How your Spanish holiday could be quite different this year \u2013 and why that matters<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Five dating tips from the Georgian era<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Three ways to tackle the \u2018Sunday scaries\u2019, the anxiety and dread many people feel at the end of the weekend<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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Like soap operas, reality shows are made up of storylines that follow characters (though they may be real people). Viewers watching hours of these programmes can develop attachments to the characters, where they feel they are \u201cone\u201d with the people on screen. <\/p>\n

Psychologists describe this as a parasocial relationship, a one-sided, unreciprocated friendship or connection to a person they only know through a screen. Research has found<\/a> that following celebrities and media figures on social media platforms may blur the lines between social and parasocial relationships. Our interaction and engagement with social media posts no longer significantly differs between close friends or famous people.<\/p>\n

Viewers\u2019 previous experiences reflect what they think of a character, creating either empathy or disdain. In a parasocial relationship, a viewer may feel a closeness and connection in their lives with a person who does not know that they exist, and based solely on the storyline of the television show.<\/p>\n

Soap actors have discussed<\/a> being shouted at in the street by \u201cfans\u201d, because of their characters\u2019 behaviour on a scripted, fictional show. Eastenders star Louisa Lytton said the abuse is a daily occurence<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Love Island contestants enter the villa a relatively unknown person in society, and come out to a barrage of messages from viewers, all responses to the show\u2019s editing, of which the contestants themselves may not know the full extent. This exponential rise in awareness of them as a person, a character and a celebrity creates a dramatic and fundamental shift in their lives. Psychological support is paramount to successfully navigating their newfound fame.<\/p>\n

ITV provides mental health support<\/a> and other resources to contestants during the filming process. As of 2022, this includes giving islanders training on \u201cthe impacts of social media and handling potential negativity\u201d. <\/p>\n

The psychology of trolls<\/h2>\n

Love Island has had a long history of mental health challenges, including the deaths of two former contestants<\/a> and former host Caroline Flack by suicide. Alex George, an ex-islander, has become the government\u2019s first youth mental health ambassador<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many of the psychological challenges that have been associated with Love Island have been linked with the social media barrage directed at contestants. Former islanders Kem Cetinay and Amber Gill now host a mental health series<\/a>, The Full Treatment, where they discuss the experience of abuse that comes from tweets and forums during and after the show airs. <\/p>\n

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