When Social Media Influencers Go Rogue: Violations of the Trans-Parasocial Relationship with Followers

This thesis qualitatively evaluates three Australian and US cases of beauty and lifestyle social media influencers violating the relationship they have with their followers. The method and findings show that the trans-parasocial relationship between influencers and their followers can be impacted by a violation, through the feelings of betrayal elicited in followers. This thesis provides empirical evidence to extend the current theoretical understanding of the SMI-follower relationship from parasocial to trans-parasocial in nature, which has important implications for influencer marketing strategy.