A Brief Report on the Association Between Fandom and Well-Being

Prior research (Reysen et al., 2024) has found an association between fans’ fandom scores (identification with a fan group), but not their fanship scores (identification with a fan interest), predicts their well-being, but hinted at the possibility that this tendency may be stronger for a fan’s favorite fan interest in particular (as opposed to a lesser interest they have). We tested this possibility in a cross-sectional study of undergraduate students who rated their degree of fanship and fandom with their top four favorite fan interests and also completed two measures of well-being. The results showed that fandom (but not fanship) identification with their first-favorite fan interest, and not fanship or fandom identification with their fourth-favorite fan interest, predicted scores on two different measures of well-being. The results are discussed in relation to the mental health benefits of fandom participation.