London
—
Cambridge Dictionary has named its word of the year for 2025, alighting on “parasocial,” used to describe a connection that people feel with someone they don’t know – or even with an artificial intelligence.
The term was coined in 1956 by sociologists Donald Horton and Richard Wohl, who wanted to describe how television viewers formed “para-social” relationships with TV personalities, the dictionary said in a statement published Wednesday.
This phenomenon continues today, as social media users form parasocial relationships with celebrities, influencers and online personalities with whom they have no personal connection.
A key…
