Terminology – WOTTIES 2025 – Cambridge Dictionary “parasocial” Word of the Year

Copyright © Françoise Herrmann

Cambridge Dictionary selected the term parasocial as Word of the Year (WOTY) 2025. In a nutshell,  parasocial refers to a one-way relationship with a celebrity, an influencer, or even with a non-human entity such as a ChatBot. A person or entity that one has never met, but with whom a strong sense of connection nonetheless exists.

Cambridge Dictionary defines the term 'parasocial' as: 

"involving or relating to a connection that someone feels between themselves or a famous person they do not know, a character in a film, book, TV series etc., or an Artificial Intelligence." 

Simone Schnalle, Professor of Experimental Social Psychology at Cambridge University, explains why the term parasocial is the perfect WOTY for 2025, and most importantly, why people form parasocial relationships. 

Reference
'Parasocial' is Cambridge Dictionary's Word of the Year. 
https://www.cambridge.org/news-and-insights/parasocial-is-cambridge-dictionary-word-of-the-year-2025