Emotional Expression and Mental Health Support in BTS Fandom Communities Using Natural Language Processing on YouTube Comments: Cross-Sectional Study.

Abstract

Background: The global rise of K-pop has shaped youth culture and online communities, particularly through BTS, a South Korean boy band with an international fanbase known as ARMY (Adorable Representative MC for Youth). Music fandoms are increasingly engaging with digital platforms such as YouTube not only for entertainment but also as spaces for emotional expression and mutual support. Despite growing interest in the mental health potential of music-based coping strategies, limited research has examined how fandom cultures differentially express emotional needs and supportive interactions online.

Objective: This study investigates specific mental health language patterns and coping mechanisms expressed by BTS fans in online spaces, examining how different linguistic features (including self-referential language and emotional expression patterns) may reflect psychological states and mental health needs. We used YouTube comments from fan-curated "sad" or "depression" playlists of BTS. We further included YouTube comments from equivalent Taylor Swift playlists as a reference group.

Methods: Using natural language processing and Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count 2022 software, we analyzed a total of 13,224 YouTube comments: 11,772 comments on BTS "sad playlist" videos and 1452 comments on Taylor Swift equivalents. Statistical comparisons were conducted to evaluate differences in comment length, word count, pronoun use, and emotional valence. Representative comments were examined to contextualize the emotion classification results.

Results: BTS original comments were significantly longer (mean 253.38, SD 703.65 characters) and had higher word counts (mean 38.93, SD 88.54 words) than Taylor Swift original comments (length: mean 89.84, SD 330.96 characters; word count: mean 16.08, SD 64.78 words; P<.001). BTS fans used more first-person singular pronouns (mean 10.24%, SD 9.57% vs mean 7.43%, SD 9.41%) and expressed greater sadness (1691/5341, 31.7% vs 75/452, 16.6%). In contrast, Taylor Swift fans exhibited higher admiration (86/452, 19% vs 429/5341, 8%). Among reply comments, BTS fans demonstrated more caring (242/1729, 14% vs 7/128, 5.5%), gratitude (294/1729, 17% vs 15/128, 11.7%), and optimism (162/1729, 9.4% vs 6/128, 4.7%). Linguistic analysis also revealed a broader international user base for BTS, including higher proportions of Spanish (719/11,772, 6.11%) and Portuguese (222/11,772, 1.89%) comments. Examination of comment content showed that fans used these spaces to disclose personal struggles, express gratitude for the community, and offer peer support, with many describing the fandom as a safe space for emotional expression they could not access elsewhere.

Conclusions: The findings show that comments on BTS fan playlists included more emotional disclosure and more supportive replies than those on the Taylor Swift comparison, consistent with fan communities operating as informal sites of peer support online. These results suggest implications for culturally responsive, community-based, and digitally mediated mental health interventions among youth and global populations.