Introduction unnecessary
K-pop or Korean pop has been influencing the world in the present time, this kind of culture
has been breaking communication and racial barrier that has been set because of its unique
charm and value that its audience sees. Korean pop culture also has been breaking international
market, also local pop cultures have been taking a huge downfall ever since the rise of K-pop in
their respective areas, this maybe a sign that audiences or consumers may tend to like a different
style or trend that has been popularized around the world (Gibson, 2018). Consumers of different
cultures tend to be swayed on the trends of other cultures because of the great advertising and
also mainly because of the fans that mimics the style of their idol, that's why people who idolize
idol’s envies them and also mimics the same style as their idol (Gibson, 2018).
K-pop’s sudden boom and growth all over the world has greatly influenced many people
and their behaviour online. K-pop was able to transcend cultural norms, greatly ammassing fans
from varying races and cultures all over the world. It also helped that there are various different
free media platforms that can freely advertise and showcase these K-pop groups to a wider
audience not only nationally but internationally (Messerlin & Shin, 2017). With K-pop joining
the fray it also boosted the economy of Korea, K-pop has so much potential that it affects the
economy (Bureau, 2019).
Majority of the population in the world today used internet to socialize with other people.
However, some people do things in cyberspace that they don't usually do in person. According to
Suler (2005), people feel less restrained and more expressive in social media due to the fact that
they feel protected behind the screens of their cellular phones. Online disinhibitions can work in
two ways; one is that people use the internet in a good or appropriate way, for better
understanding this is called benign disinhibition. While on the other hand toxic disinhibition are
the people who choose to use the internet for harassment, criticism, harsh judgements or just
having a rude manner in general. Because internet users have anonymity on their side they tend
to be more open to others and true to themselves although on the other side of the same coin,
people tend to use their anonymity to cause harm or berate internet users who have revealed their
identity, to be held credible for their websites or blogs (Hollenbaugh & Everett, 2013). Internet
toxicity comes in varying ways although it is prevalent in most comic fandoms where fans are
quick to react when a certain character trait is altered to fit a postmodern narrative that suits the
current generation or to suit a certain group’s perspective. These actions easily trigger fans of
different culture of mediums to revolt and hate on a different take on the said medium due to its
lack of narrative coherence according to the original source material (Proctor & Kies, 2018).
Admiring someone or something has a positive effect by just communicating with people
with different cultures and race, this trait corresponds with the unity of certain fandoms that
gives people the sense of belongingness and emotional connection (Lacasa et.al, 2016). These
emotions that fans tend to showcase explain just how extensive the influence of a certain group
or someone can be, a fandom with benign tendencies clearly shows that unity can still be
achieved with the use of popularity of certain group or someone. Opposite to the benign behavior
is the fans obsessiveness to certain groups or idols of other culture that leads to certain negative
effects to their mentality and to other people. This trait clearly shows that fans unhealthy
imagination to their certain group or someone that they idolizes reveals their unhealthy mentality
of imprisoning this certain fandom to their mind and clearly imagining that they own this
specific idol group (Jones, & Jones, 2018). This is when the admiring stops and the pestering or
badgering begins, it is a sight to behold when fans fight their own fandom group or the very own
artist or group of that fandom because of their own “love” for the group. Intimidation, malicious
comments and undermining edited or unedited photos are just one of the behaviors that toxic
fans shows when they are online on social media (Jones, & Jones, 2018).
Thus, with the use of qualitative analysis or inference in this paper we the researchers would
like to show the impact or behaviours of K-pop fandoms around the internet to see how they
would act in accordance to their given influence and use of social media platforms, as a way to
voice out their support and opinions towards their favored idol group. This is to assess whether
they fall in a benign or toxic disinhibition.
Methodology
The study adopted the qualitative type of research to determine online disinhibition effects
that affecting K-pop fandom account users. The study involved four respondents that are using
K-pop fandom accounts and majority of the participants used Twitter as their medium. The
respondents were informed for the whole process of the survey conducted through the use of
messenger due to the respondents home location. The respondents were asked questions about
the impact of using fandom accounts. The identities of the respondents were hidden for private
purposes and as requested by the participants only their fandom account username is used for
identification.
The researchers used a survey questionnaire method to gather data and for the interpretation of
the data. The survey is composed of seven (7) questions determining the Online Disinhibition
effects of having K-pop fandom account. The questions for the respondents are the following:
1. What is your purpose for making a fandom account?
2. What year did you start using a fandom account?
3. How many hours per day do you use social media to post about your idols?
4. Do you use your account to draw on positive reinforcement or to berate other fandoms?
Answer the two if you’ve done both if not just answer whichever you’ve done.
5. Do you feel happy or fulfilled whenever you use your fandom account to spread positivity
among other K-pop fandom?
6. Do you feel relieved or cathartic whenever you use your fandom account to talk
negatively about other K-pop fandom?
7. Is there any Kpop group that is not of your particular liking? if yes, why?*
Results and Discussion
Respondent 1: @TomorrowXTogetherPHL (60,735 follower count on Facebook),
@TXTPH_TWT (917 follower count on Twitter)
1. What is your purpose for making a fandom account?
- This is actually my personal account before it came as a spazz account. The sole purpose
of having this fan account is to release all of my feelings for my best boys and girls (K-
pop idols).
2. What year did you start using a fandom account?
- I started using this account for KPOP since 2015, I guess.
3. How many hours per day do you use social media to post about your idols?
- 3-4 hours? I'm not really that sure since I post whenever I have time.
4. Do you use your account to draw on positive reinforcement or to berate other fandoms?
- Everyone is entitled to have their own opinion. I use this account for both things, but
most of the time, just for positive reinforcement.
5. Do you feel happy or fulfilled whenever you use your fandom account to spread positivity
among other K-pop fandom?
- Of course. Who would not?
6. Do you feel relieved or cathartic whenever you use your fandom account to talk negatively
about other K-pop fandom?
- Not really. My conscience are always eating my thoughts whenever I spread bad vibes
on my account.
7. Is there any Kpop group that is not of your particular liking? if yes, why?*
- I can never hate any KPOP group because I know their experiences in life. Not unless
they do the things that I really hate (e.g. drug use, misogynistic remarks, racist remarks,
etc.). I still believe in the "Nobody's perfect" quote.
Respondent 2: @dailysobi (16.7K follower count on Twitter)
1. What is your purpose for making a fandom account?
- Initially, for getting more updates about bts and then later on, I continued using my
fandom account to gain more internet friends.
2. What year did you start using a fandom account?
- I created my twitter account on 2015.
3. How many hours per day do you use social media to post about your idols?
- When I was still active (during vacation) I spend most of my days browsing Twitter and
interacting with my twitter friends.
4. Do you use your account to draw on positive reinforcement or to berate other fandoms?
- I don't usually meddle with other fandoms’ businesses and my tweets are mostly about
bts only, like their funny moments, their achievements, their music, their bond. I mostly
tweet just positive things.
5. Do you feel happy or fulfilled whenever you use your fandom account to spread positivity
among other K-pop fandom?
- Yes!! I believe that K-pop fans should stop having fan wars and just start supporting each
other because we are all just fans after all.
6. Do you feel relieved or cathartic whenever you use your fandom account to talk negatively
about other K-pop fandom?
- No, I just don’t really like messing up with other fandoms because twitter world is scary,
one wrong thing u say and everyone will start attacking you. so I just focus on tweeting
mainly about Bangtan Sonyeondan (BTS).
7. Is there any Kpop group that is not of your particular liking? if yes, why?*
- There is none. I think every K-pop group deserves love and recognition because they all
work hard.
Respondent 3: @rxalmaetamong (231 follower count on Twitter)
1. What is your purpose for making a fandom account?
- I have a lot of mutuals on my previous tumblr fan account for BIGBANG and when
twitter got famous, we all moved into twitter. Connecting with all of your friends with the
same interest.
2. What year did you start using a fandom account?
- 2015 (old account) 2018 (new account)
3. How many hours per day do you use social media to post about your idols?
- Everyday, 2 hours.
4. Do you use your account to draw on positive reinforcement or to berate other fandoms?
- Nope but my account is for blocking hate comments and spreading false rumors to my
bias/idol. We have a group chat in Kakaotalk and Twitter to link those accounts that
creates issues and false rumors.
5. Do you feel happy or fulfilled whenever you use your fandom account to spread positivity
among other K-pop fandom?
- Yes, I always advise my unnies from different places on our group chat to stay positive
and wait for comebacks for our idols because I know they will not let us down.
6. Do you feel relieved or cathartic whenever you use your fandom account to talk negatively
about other K-pop fandom?
- No. I have never engaged in negativity towards other fandom because I put focus on my
bias.
7. Is there any Kpop group that is not of your particular liking? if yes, why?*
- BLACKPINK, overhyped and overrated kpop group. I don’t like their music and I would
prefer cute concepts than too much hip hop in a girl group.
Respondent 4: Anonymous (899 follower count on Twitter)
1.What is your purpose for making a fandom account?
- Back then, being a KPop fan was not common and a lot of people around me would
somewhat bash us for liking Korean idols. I created my fan account to reach out to those
K-pop fans who felt the same way and to also widen my connection like gaining friends
that has the same interest as me. Moreover, it is much easier to get updates about my
idols and look for something related to them using my fan account.
2. What year did you start using a fandom account?
- If I’m not mistaken, I started my fan account last 2014. That was actually my first ever
twitter account and it was supposed to be my personal one but somehow it ended up
being used to “spazz” (a term we, fans, use when looking for updates about our idols)
3. How many hours per day do you use social media to post about your idols?
- I am not as active now because of school work. But back then, I would spend around 8
hours a day on twitter, instagram and facebook. I would search for updates, watch music
show performances, music videos, chat with mutuals and alike. I even became one of the
admins of a popular BTS-related page and eventually quit after months I'm having a hard
time balancing my studies and my duty as an admin who is supposed to be active and
post latest updates about bangtan for at least 10 hours a day.
4.Do you use your account to draw on positive reinforcement or to berate other fandoms?
- It was 2014 when I started to become a KPop fan and I can say that I was immature back
then. I would fight those bashers through twitter. However, after a year or some time, I
just let it pass, support my own idols and post things that don’t disrespect someone (like
comparing a group to another, yikes!).
5. Do you feel happy or fulfilled whenever you use your fandom account to spread positivity
among other K-pop fandom?
- Of course! What I like about different fandoms is when they support each other. For
instance, in the KPop industry, there are music shows (music bank, inkigayo, m
countdown, music core, etc.) and several idols and singers perform. Weekly, there is a
winner who successfully topped the music charts and online/onsite voting etc. There are
times where some groups would be nominated for the first time and fans from different
fandoms would help vote for that group. This doesn’t only stop on music shows but also
on year-end award show like Mnet Asian Music Awards. Isn’t it beautiful watching
everyone grow while supporting every fandom and not practicing crab mentality? :>>
6. Do you feel relieved or cathartic whenever you use your fandom account to talk negatively
about other K-pop fandom?
- Nope. Never in my wildest dream haha
7. Is there any Kpop group that is not of your particular liking? if yes, why?
- I don’t have one. Every KPop group is unique. From concepts to members’s personality
to choreographies and such. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses but their
training process is no joke so I don’t deserve hating a group for I don’t know how hard
they’ve experienced before having the spotlight. Ex: Jihyo, the lead of TWICE, trained
for 10 years before debuting!!!!! And she was bashed during her early years debuting as a
TWICE member because of her body :< Unfortunately, she is now thinner than the other
TWICE members ☹
The results in question 1 show that majority of the respondents purpose in making
fandom account is to support their K-pop idols. According to Ohandjanian (2018), K-pop idols
brings people together all over the world, fans support their idols to win certain competition or
because they feel welcome in that specific group they belong. In question 2 and 3 most of them
use their accounts around two to 10 hours or if they have time to update or post about their
chosen fandom. The timing of the creation of the accounts of the target respondents are around
2014- 2018 and two out of the four are still actively updating their accounts. Korean pop music
and artists have become widely popular for the past years up until the present time, with the use
of social media platforms it became more convenient for fans to get updated with their idols
(Lee, 2012). In the next three questions the participants clearly stated through the interview that
they don’t use their account to spread negativity but clearly to show the positivity between each
fans. Estimated pf 89 million across 113 countries are Korean pop fans and majority of them use
social media to spread positivity among their fellow K-pop fans (Hwang, 2019). One of the
respondents (@dailysobi) stated that twitter or any forms of social media can really put you
down because with just one wrong move that a person will do or say may implicate them deeply,
this clearly means that every action that an individual will do or say in social media must be
clearly thought through and carefully because people will berate anyone if they don’t like any
words that they will see on whatever social media platform everyone is using. In the last question
three of the participants have nothing to do with other fandoms both supported other groups. But
one stated a K-pop idol group that the respondent doesn't like. According to Sun-hwa (2018),
some of the K-pop fans or fandoms are being toxic because of the obsession they feel their bias
group. Hence, all of these interviews determined that most of the participants are Benign users
but in some specific reason one of them is a Toxic user when it comes in other K-pop group
choice of concepts. All of them made a fandom account to support their bias groups free to
express their elves without limitation and to become more updated.
CONCLUSION
K-pop has been rampant throughout the years. It had a significant impact on behavior
towards social media. Through K-pop cultures, Korean culture was easily influenced by different
countries because of a great showcase of their own culture. Many people are more confident to
say their thoughts because of anonymity, because of this internet users are more capable of doing
things that they would generally not do in real life. They are more confident behind the screen
because they feel not only more protected but also accomplished being able to spread positivity,
and a large factor of this is these internet users not revealing their identity. Toxic disinhibition is
when people take advantage of their anonymity to release their deep negative thoughts and
opinions. Many people on social media are engaged to spread news or to support their particular
idol. This study concludes that not all fandom accounts have a toxic motive to any K-pop group
(@rxalmaetamong) stated that he does not engage in any negativity to other fandoms, for he only
focuses on his own bias. The majority of our respondents have positive feedback towards other
K-pop groups. (@TomorrowXTogetherPHL) believes that every group has its flaws, and
everyone should focus on the group they support instead of dragging and hating others. This
shows that fans also have the power of unity under the web and helps to spread positivity with
the use of their respective fandom.
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