Cars and Celebrities

A recent press article in the Telegraph’s Science feature, pointed out that specific makes such as the Chrysler Crossfire , BMW645ci,and the VW Sharan were rated among the “angriest” cars. Whilst the Japanese Diahatsu, a small hatchback, was said to be the saddest. One would never think of an object most of us depend on as being attributed as “emotional” and having personality. But in reality they in fact do. These become symbols not only of our status and achievement in life, but are seen by society as how vertically mobile we have or have not become in an advanced industrial economy. The same press article rightly points to the Nissan Micra as the most submissive car whilst the Toyota Aygo the most childish car. The various social media sources see the Vauxhall Astra as the most popular friendly car for the average runabout person. Similarly, that German built war machine the classic Beetle has made a comeback with its femininity, matching the commonly ascribed “Hairdressers“ car..
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American reality TV shows

We live lives which may be heavily influenced by our attachment or addiction to Celebrity culture and the lifestyles of a range of celebrities some of whom we become devoted to in an extraordinary way. We go to extremes in buying same celebrity brands such as hair products expensive make up, brands they in fact may not use at all , and shoes handbags and event trips to their holidays resorts in the chance of a real life glimpse of them. As a Psychologist who works with celebrity’s lifestyles and celebrity culture I often ask to what extent do the viewing public become addicted to these celebrities or allow their mere presence on screen to be the emotional regulator of your behaviour? How often to you become realistic or choose viewing wisely? Ask yourself if the hours spent viewing such programmes is simple entertainment or can it have any social influence over my behaviour? In relation to public health of the nation it’s wise to ask oneself how dependent are we on getting our fix.....
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Social Media Psychologist

The buzz of media presence week after week, the unexpected researchers calls, the attention seeking behaviours and so on. I find that the celebrity culture produces in each of them chronic self consciousness, and in some cases loneliness and self destructive behaviours. In particular is the loss of privacy and living in and out of hotel rooms and an unstable family life . There is the effect that celebrities have on their fans, can you imagine if this was the case in a years time after Michaela has done the TV circuits. How would teenagers react and could they fully understand the amorality of such criminal acts of behaviour and the confusion it creates in young minds of being a Glamour model after serving a short prison sentence for a major drug crime? She would then experience what we psychologists call “ parasocial interaction” which simply means that whilst the fans all or most will know her story, she will know little about them and the effects on their psychological development..
Read more: from social media psychologist Dr Arthur Cassidy.

TV Psychologist

Celebrities are a self-selected group of narcissists. Whereas it is certainly true that some individuals decide to pursue acting or singing careers for the pure love of the artistic forms in question, the great majority of celebrity wannabes are largely driven by the outcomes (e.g., fame, money, adulation). A recent study by S. Mark Young and Drew Pinsky supports the contention that celebrities are narcissists. The extraordinary attention that is lavished on celebrities (not to mention the outlandish sums of money) makes it easy to succumb to one’s hype. People line up for hours to get a glimpse of Simon Cowell coming out of his limousine, and will scream with visceral religious fervour at his mere sight. Take a narcissist, and feed his or her ego in such a manner twenty-four hours a day, and it is not difficult to guess that Simon or David Band Victoria Beckham starts to actually believe that they are superheros (rather than playing one in the movies).
Read more: from tv psychologist Dr Arthur Cassidy.