Celebrity worship and empty self

Abstract Celebrity worship has become increasingly prevalent, yet the psychological patterns related to this behaviour remain unclear. This study investigated psychological emptiness as a central pattern linking social exclusion and identity vulnerabilities to celebrity worship through wishful identification and the need to belong. We conducted two studies using correlational and experimental designs. Study 1 examined trait-level relationships using path and mediation analysis, while Study 2 experimentally manipulated social exclusion using autobiographical recall and tested mediation pathways. Social exclusion significantly predicted psychological emptiness, which in turn was found to be related to celebrity worship. Wishful identification and the need to belong mediated the emptiness-celebrity worship relationship across both studies. These findings reveal that celebrity worship may be related to addressing inner emptiness triggered by social disconnection.