Netflix and Feel: Cultivating Fandom and Identity Through Sports Docuseries

This work investigated how parasocial relationships (PSRs), audience behaviors, and sports docuseries consumption jointly shape today’s sports fandom. The research utilized a combination of social identity theory (SIT) with PSR, conducting a survey of 277 participants to test a moderated mediation model (Hayes PROCESS Model 7). This model examined the relationships between PSRs, docuseries consumption, fandom, and behavioral engagement outcomes such as intent to recommend, cross-platform engagement, multi-platform viewing habits and brand engagement, live engagement and event intentions, intent to continue viewing, and fan conversion. This research contributed to SIT by demonstrating how streaming platforms and docuseries offer a different form of fandom that draws in audiences across various geographies, demographics, and communities beyond traditional live sports fans, creating new pathways for identity formation. It also contributed to PSR theory by highlighting the context-specific role of these narratives in shaping attachment and engagement. Overall, the research findings highlight how digital storytelling, PSR, and platform design work together to create identity-driven, commercially significant fan communities in the streaming era.