According to celebrity gossip magazines and 24-hour news channels, fame is pretty darn fun. Who wouldn’t want fabulous vacations, designer clothes, and constant adoration? Fame used to be a byproduct of success, an unpleasant but tolerated side effect of being exceptional. Now, fame itself has become the entire goal and the manner in which the famous achieve their fame is irrelevant. According to a 2006 report by the Pew Research Center, becoming famous is the primary life goal for 51 percent of eighteen to twenty-five-year olds. We’re obsessed …. but why?
A Recipe for Misery
Some evidence suggests that fame-seeking behavior is unhealthy. In a study at the University of Rochester, researchers showed that subjects motivated by external goals like praise and recognition reported lower emotional well-being than subjects with internal goals such as personal growth or physical health. Psychologists have also established a link between fame seeking and feelings of rejection or abandonment. People who feel ignored or neglected when they’re young can have a tendency to chase recognition and approval once they’re adults. They think that becoming famous is the only way to get the attention and love they feel they deserve. For anyone picked on, teased, or humiliated as a child or teenager, becoming a celebrity is the ultimate in-your-face triumph.
Dreams of Stardom
Many people motivated solely by the pursuit of fame naturally gravitate toward the entertainment industry, hungry for the lavish lifestyle and constant attention that they see celebrities enjoying. For fame seekers, reality television has been a goldmine, a shortcut to gain exposure to launch their career. Robert Galinsky, the founder and principal of the New York Reality TV School, estimates that about 50 percent of his students are actors, models, singers, and other performers trying to get cast on reality competition shows like American Idol or America’s Next Top Model, hoping to find that elusive nugget of fame that will grab Hollywood’s attention and help them land gigs on TV or in film. “It’s a slightly desperate approach to getting air time,” says Galinsky, but it doesn’t stop people from trying.
