Young Celebrity Video Gamers and Social Well-Being: An Exploration of Emotional Dynamics in Affective (Media) Environments

This study aims to investigate the role of video games in promoting social well-being and developing para-social behaviors between young gamers, and between young gamers and young celebrity gamers. Based on the assumption that emotions shape our social interactions, the research will focus on how videogames, and especially the work of video gamer celebrity, can influence players' emotions and, consequently, analyze their actions in the digital and online world. These could be transpositions of those in the offlineworld or new nuances. We will show the results of a media content analysis of young celebrity gamers profile on Twitch, and the comments they receive, in a in an affective media environment (Grusin, 2017; Farci, 2019), like social media. We categorized the different emotions aroused, from anger to empathy, and how these translate into altruistic, cooperative or competitive behaviors between gamers. The impact of social and cultural contexts on the perception and interpretation of emotions within games and between these two different categories will also be explored. The main objective is to understand how video games can be used for young people as tools for the development of social and emotional skills, fostering the creation of positive bonds and promoting values such as solidarity and inclusion. Furthermore, we will try to understand how a social network such as Twitch, with its affordances, can contribute to the definition of para-social relations between young gamers and between young gamers and celebrities in this sector. The research will be based on a thorough review of existing literature and the use of quantitative and qualitative methodologies. The expected results will contribute to a better understanding of the potential of video games as educational and social tools for young people and offer new perspectives on the relationship between media, emotions, and well-being.