Member Since: 5/10/2012
Posts: 10,996
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60% of 1D stans are 25 and over
http://noisey.vice.com/en_uk/blog/wh...oiseytwitteruk
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There is a double standard surrounding fans of boy bands, and it has nothing to do with gender—it has to do with age. No fans get as unfairly dumbed down as boy band fans, particularly One Directions'. To assume that all fans of boy bands are consumerized teenage girls is not only incorrect, but it disqualifies a large percentage of the fandom who are actually adult women (and men). While yes, boybands do in fact attract throngs of young females, don’t chalk that up to more than what it is and that’s good marketing.
Consider the canon: Every boyband from The Monkees to The Backstreet Boys has left an imprint on generations of teenage superfans. Every woman remembers the boy band of their youth because that music represents a first promise of doe-eyed love, seductive to pubescent girls for obvious reasons. A recent segment on NPR stipulated that through the boy band archetype, young girls can define and make sense of the of love and sexuality looming up ahead. However, that kind of psychology suggests that obsessively loving a boy band acts as a placeholder for an adult experience. But what happens to these fangirls once they age out of the targeted demographic? If fangirling over a boy band like One Direction is understood to be a uniquely adolescent phenomenon, both commercially and psychologically, then why is that according to data from Pandora, 60 percent of their fans are 25 or older?
Dr. Jamie Goodwin-Uhler has published multiple studies on the psychology of fan culture. When asked if she had any theories as to what might attract out-of-demographic women to the One Direction fandom, she explained that "the experience of allowing oneself unabashed infatuation with handsome, famous, unreachable young men might recreate the kind of teenage abandonment that we (as adults) wonder to be long-lost. Adolescence is a powerful developmental period, rife with complicated feelings, a steeped-in-hormones search through and discovery of one's sexuality and identity. Boy band fandom could allow one to re-experience that some of that youthful, vital energy—and for a person slogging through the often un-fun responsibilities of adulthood, that energy could be intoxicating."
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Today marks the release of 1D's anticipated new album Made in the A.M. (alongside Justin Beiber's album as well.) Basically, it's a big day for boy bands and an even bigger day for their fans. I decided to ask several adults 21 or older about their involvement in the fandom and their connection to this particular band. While a few of the participants admitted that their involvement in the One Direction fandom is, as Dr. Goodwin-Uhler claims, a distraction from their adult lives, that's hardly unanimous. Turns out the reasoning behind these seven adults' obsession with One Direction deals directly with the realities of their adult lives, ranging from accepting with death, coping body image, and discovering sexuality to dealing with depression or a paralyzing fear of physical intimacy.
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You can read these individual interviews in said article.
Yasss @ a 44 yo woman stanning for 1D. Impact 
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