Desire for Fame: Scale Development and Association with Personal Goals and Aspirations

Abstract

The desire for fame appears to be an aspiration for many people, which is associated with material wealth, social recognition, and admiration. Recently, reality TV has provided the opportunity for ordinary people to become famous with little effort or outstanding achievement. A literature review revealed no scale to measure the desire for fame that is not specifically concerned with celebrity worship or personality, but related to the perception of lifestyle benefits associated with being famous. The key objective of this study was to develop a scale to measure the desire for fame and test its validity and reliability. The scale items were developed through the literature review and exploratory interviews. A pilot study was conducted to test the relationship between the desire for fame and external goals, which indicated positive associations. A second, online survey was conducted using a sample of 507 people. The Desire for Fame scale was found to have good psychometric properties and the findings suggest significant relationships with extrinsic and intrinsic aspirations, consistent with self‐determination theory. The social and marketing implications of the research are discussed and suggestions have been made for future research.

Self-Esteem Instability and the Desire for Fame

“…The inclusion of self-esteem instability allowed for a more nuanced understanding of the connection between feelings of self-worth and the desire for fame. It is possible that the pursuit of fame is one strategy that individuals with unstable high self-esteem adopt as a way to bolster their tenuous feelings of self-worth because fame is often equated with status, recognition, and beauty (Gountas et al, 2012). It would be informative for future research to examine whether these findings extend to other markers of fragile high selfesteem (i.e., contingent self-esteem, discrepancies between implicit and explicit selfesteem) in order to gain a better understanding of the similarities and differences between these markers of self-esteem fragility.…”

“…This suggests that one underlying reason that individuals seek fame is to gain social acceptance and inclusion. In addition, recent empirical examinations of fame have found a number of different motivations for desiring fame that extend beyond a desire for acceptance (e.g., Gountas, Gountas, Reeves, & Moran, 2012;Greenwood, Long, & Dal Cin, 2013). For example, extrinsic motivations such as financial success, attractiveness, and social recognition are often associated with the desire to become famous (Gountas et al, 2012).…”

“…In addition, recent empirical examinations of fame have found a number of different motivations for desiring fame that extend beyond a desire for acceptance (e.g., Gountas, Gountas, Reeves, & Moran, 2012;Greenwood, Long, & Dal Cin, 2013). For example, extrinsic motivations such as financial success, attractiveness, and social recognition are often associated with the desire to become famous (Gountas et al, 2012). However, striving to meet extrinsic goals-such as becoming famous-has been shown to be associated with poorer psychological well-being and physical health (Deci & Ryan, 2000;Kasser & Ryan, 1993;Sheldon & Kasser, 1998) as well as distracting individuals from the achievement of more intrinsic goals (e.g., selfacceptance) that are associated with personal growth and well-being (Vonk & Smit, 2012).…”

Mensuração de Atitude: Proposição de um Protocolo de Elaboração de Escalas

“…Embora haja certa subjetividade no julgamento destes envolvida na validação de face, Gountas et al (2012) afirmam que este teste é importante para a purificação de uma escala, pois pode detectar alguma falha de construção dos itens anteriormente aos cálculos.…”

Introduction to the Special Issue: Psychology, Marketing, and Celebrities

“…Certainly, the economic impact of celebrities and the entertainment industry is not trivial (Agrawal & Kamakura, ), and critics have blamed a prevalent celebrity and entertainment culture for detrimental changes in society, such as the erosion of traditional values, reasoning, and cognitive abilities (Hedges, ; Postman, ). Furthermore, many young people are consumed with aspirations of fame and fortune, which they see as easily attainable by becoming celebrities (Gountas, Gountas, Reeves, & Moran, this issue; Halpern, ).…”