We need to cut him a little slack. He's clearly not mentally well.
Let's diagnose him.
Celebrity worship syndrome (
CWS) or
celebrity obsession disorder (
COD) is an
obsessive addictive disorder in which a person becomes overly involved with the details of a
celebrity's personal and professional life.
[1] Psychologists have indicated that though many people obsess over
film,
television,
sport and
pop stars, the only common factor between them is that they are all
figures in the public eye. Written observations of celebrity worship date back to the 19th century.
[2]
Classifications
Simple obsessional
Simple obsessional stalking constitutes a majority of all
stalking cases, anywhere from 69 to 79%, and is dominated by males. This form of stalking is generally associated with individuals who have shared previous personal relationships with their victims. However, this is not necessarily the case between a common member of the public exhibiting celebrity worship syndrome and the famous person with whom they are obsessed. Individuals that meet the criteria of being labeled as a "simple obsessional stalker" tend to share a set of characteristics including an inability to have successful personal relationships in their own lives, social awkwardness, feelings of powerlessness, a sense of insecurity, and very low
self-esteem. Of these characteristics, low self-esteem plays a large role in the obsession that these individuals develop with their victim, in this case, the famous person. If the individual is unable to have any sort of connection to the celebrity with which they are obsessed, their own sense of self-worth may decline.
[4]
Entertainment-social
This level of admiration is linked to a celebrity's ability to capture the attention of their fans. Entertainment-social celebrity worship is used to describe a relatively low level of obsession. An example of a typical entertainment-social attitude would be "My friends and I like to discuss what my favorite celebrity has done."
[5] It may also be seen in the form of obsessively
following celebrities on social media, although considered the lowest level of celebrity worship. It has been seen to have a number of negative effects with regards the development of unhealthy eating tendencies (eating disorders), anxiety, depression, poor body image and low self esteem, especially in young adolescents aged 13 to mid-20s. This can be supported by a study carried out on a group of female adolescents between the ages of (17–20).
[6]
Intense-personal
This is an intermediate level of obsession that is associated with
neuroticism as well as behaviors linked to
psychoticism. An example of an intense-personal attitude toward a celebrity would include claims such as "I consider my favorite celebrity to be my soul mate."
[5] It has been found that in particular, people who worship celebrities in this manner often have low self-esteem with regards to their body type, especially if they think that the celebrity is physically attractive.
[7] The effects of intense-personal celebrity worship on body image are seen in some cases of cosmetic surgery. Females who have high levels of obsession are more accepting of cosmetic surgery than those who do not obsess over celebrities to this extent.
[8]
Love obsessional
As the name suggests, individuals who demonstrate this sort of stalking behavior develop a
love obsession with somebody who they have no personal relation to. Love obsessional stalking accounts for roughly 20–25% of all stalking cases. The people that demonstrate this form of stalking behavior are likely to have a mental disorder, commonly either
schizophrenia or
paranoia. Individuals that are love obsessional stalkers often convince themselves that they are in fact in a relationship with the subject of their obsession. For example, a woman who had been stalking
David Letterman for a total of five years claimed to be his wife when she had no personal connection to him.
[4] Other celebrities who have fallen victim to this form of stalking include
Jennifer Aniston,
Halle Berry,
Jodie Foster, and
Mila Kunis, along with numerous other
A-list stars.
[9]
Erotomanic
[
Erotomanic, originating from the word
erotomania, refers to stalkers who genuinely believe that their victims are in love with them. The victims in this case are almost always well known within their community or within the media, meaning that they can range from small-town celebrities to famous personalities from Hollywood. Comprising less than 10% of all stalking cases, erotomanic stalkers are the least common. Unlike simple-obsessional stalkers, a majority of the individuals in this category of stalking are women. Similar to love-obsessional stalkers, the behavior of erotomanic stalkers may be a result of an underlying psychological disorder such as
schizophrenia,
bipolar disorder, or
major depression.
[10]
Individuals who have erotomania tend to believe that the celebrity with whom they are obsessed with is utilizing the media as a way to communicate with them by sending special messages or signals. Although these stalkers have unrealistic beliefs, they are less likely to seek any form of face-to-face interaction with their celebrity obsession, therefore posing less of a threat to them.
[11]
Borderline-pathological
This classification is the most severe level of celebrity worship. It is characterized by pathological attitudes and behaviors, as a result of celebrity worship. This includes willingness to commit crime on behalf of the celebrity who is the object of worship, or to spend money on common items used by the celebrity at some point, such as napkins.
[5][12][13]