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The study of psychology has ubiquitous applications, meaning its
Popular Culture in a Theoretical Lens
Table of Contents
Introduction 1
The Psychology of Popular Culture 1
The Mentality of Popular Culture 1-7
The Psychological and Sociological Theories 1-4
surrounding Popular Culture
The Critical Theories regarding Popular 4-5
Culture
The Semiotic Approaches to Popular Culture 5-7
References 7-8
It has been repeatedly stated that popular culture is driven by both the
consumer and the business industry, using the various media
available to the masses, and letting the working class decide which
are prevalent and seminal to the generation – and which are not. As
such, many icons and trends rose and fell, with some achieving a sort
of immortality to the masses due to their “timeless” quality and cultural
importance. However, what was being pushed back to the dark
recesses of the bright lights of popular culture were the machinations
that tickled the human mind into choosing that these were things worth
one’s time.
What has not yet been discussed is how humans decide which should
be celebrated and which ones should fade in the printed and digital
annals – the psychology of popular culture.
The Psychology of Popular Culture
In a formal sense, psychology is defined as the scientific study of the
mind and behavior, actively involved in studying and understanding
the various mental processes, brain functions, and behavior of
humans (Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences, n.d.).
This is the science that tackles the inner machinations of the human
mind, how it operates. As a “Hub Science,” psychology has deep
connections with medical sciences, social sciences, and education
(Boyack, Klavans, & Borner, 2005).
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researches can be applied to anyone regardless of culture. And
popular culture is no exception – it is often the primary source of
information people have whenever they need to learn more about
certain cultures.
Whenever one defines popular culture, the one (1) thing that is worth
noting is about “what is trending,” “what is hip,” and “what is the latest.”
What is largely overlooked, however, is that popular culture is also a
phenomenon that reflects the values of certain cultures, which stems
from the active participation of the people of those cultures. As such,
in a psychological sense, popular culture is the accumulation of all
its elements capable of sustaining and perpetuating itself based on the
endorsement and participation of the people through their own volition
(i.e., self-agency) (Godsil, MacFarlane, & Sheppard, 2016).
The Mentality of Popular Culture
As popular culture is being disseminated largely by the various media
discussed in the previous module, one can try to look into the theories
that operate behind the scenes to pique the interest of the masses.
There are four (4) major players behind the psychological effects of
popular culture in its aspects:
• The different psychological and sociological theories that dissect
the mind;
• The different theories critical to the dissemination of popular
culture; and
• The success of symbols as means of spreading popular culture
(semiotics).
The Psychological and Sociological Theories surrounding
Popular Culture
The success of popular culture stems from the idea that people are
social creatures. It has been proven that if a person is left isolated for
too long, mental health issues may appear –which includes violent
outbursts and suicide contemplation (truTV, 2016).
• Theories for Self (Psychological theories)
o Queer Theory
The popular notion of popular culture is that only a few icons
and trends remain relevant for a long time. Others just come
and go. This is in a somewhat similar lens to the notion that
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stereotypes are being challenged constantly through the lens
of queer theory, a new theory where ideas and identity
categories that are considered as “hard set” (i.e., already
existing) in established fields are constantly being scrutinized
and challenged. In this theory, there is no set normal – only
changing views and norms that people can categorize (Illinois
Library, 2021).
Since popular culture is always changing, apart from being
used to deliver messages designed to challenge issues about
sexuality, it [popular culture] continually challenges the beliefs
of people through the introduction of more flexible gender
roles, representation, and standards. As such, films such as
Brokeback Mountain, Die Beautiful, and The Panti Sisters
reflect queer theory in different approaches to challenge the
ever-changing norms in our society.
o Archetypes
Carl Jung came up with the idea of Jungian archetypes,
which are images and themes that come from the collective
unconscious. Archetypes are things that have the same
meanings in different cultures. They may show up in dreams,
literature, art, or religion.
Many people think of archetypes in terms of a list of typical
characters, like the hero, the goddess, the wise man, and so
on. Such a list doesn't do enough to understand the
ephemeral core concept. In Jung's words,
"… Definite mythological images of motifs ... are
nothing more than conscious representations; it
would be absurd to think that such variable
representations could be inherited."
Instead, their deeper, instinctual sources, which are called
"archaic remnants," are the source of the archetypal images,
not the conscious representations.
In popular culture, however, archetypes (particularly the
character archetypes) help us quickly identify the motives and
general personalities of different icons, especially in TV
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shows, games, and films. Some common archetype identifiers
in popular culture are as follows:
1. The Father archetype represents an authority figure –
stern and powerful. Its moral alignment shall dictate how
others perceive him.
• If the Father is morally positive, then he is considered
a capable and protective leader. Examples include
Joe West (The Flash), Odin Allfather (MCU’s
Thor), and Gregory Peck (To Kill a Mockingbird).
• If the Father is morally negative, then he is considered
a dictator – a man that is manipulative, cold, and with
a grandiose vision of transcending beyond the
material world. Examples include Darth Vader (Star
Wars), Wilson Fisk (MCU’s Daredevil), and Marlon
Brando (The Godfather).
2. The Mother archetype represents the well-known
maternal instincts – nurturing and comforting. Its moral
alignment shall dictate how others perceive her.
• If the Mother is morally positive, then she is
considered a caring mother, full of love and
acceptance. She will defend anyone who hurt her
loved ones with equal ferocity, if not more, as the
morally good Father. Examples include Mine-a
(Encantadia), Katara (The Legend of Aang), and
Melina Vostokoff (MCU’s Black Widow).
• If the Mother is morally negative, then she is the
wicked mother, neglectful and conceited. She is
stubborn and obsessive and will think of nothing else
but to satisfy her own agendas. Examples include
Lady Tremaine (Cinderella), Mother Gothel
(Rapunzel and Tangled), and Cersei Lannister
(Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire).
3. The Child archetype represents a person’s views of
children – full of innocence, renewed life, and salvation.
Its moral alignment shall dictate how others perceive
them.
• If the Child is morally positive, then they are
considered innocent, playful, and vivacious (i.e.,
cheerful). They bring sunshine to someone’s life
because of their infectious cheerfulness. Examples
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include Hyūga Hinata (Naruto), Scott Lang (MCU’s
Ant-man), and Santino (May Bukas Pa).
• If the Child is morally negative, then they are
considered naïve, ignorant, and over-dependent.
They will never act on their own because they know
someone else will provide for them. Examples include
Dudley Dursley (The Wizarding World), Joffrey
Baratheon (Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice
and Fire), and Jane (Twilight series).
o Affect theory
Affect theory is a way to think about culture, history, and
politics that looks at things that aren't words. Affects make us
who we are, but they aren't always under our control or even
in our awareness. They can only sometimes be expressed in
words. Michel Foucault's "analytics of power," the study of
animal rights and secularism, and my own field, religious
studies, are all topics that can be linked to affect theory. In
order to better understand power, Affect Theory tells people
that they should think of power as a play.
Affect studies, which are mostly based on cultural studies,
have been very interested in how emotions and feelings are
formed in the social and cultural world. Media and
communication scholars, on the other hand, have paid a lot of
attention to how emotions and feelings are made by media,
how they are communicated through media, and what kinds
of emotions people have when they use media.
o Popular psychology
Ever wondered why there are so many YouTube and Tiktok
videos that feature self-help guides, as well as psychology tips
and tricks?
That is because many people begin to watch self-help guides
and psychology-related videos simply because of accessibility
and the personal connection it gives to the viewers. This is a
part of popular psychology.
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Popular psychology is a term that describes any and all
psychological ideologies, therapies, and other techniques that
gained traction through media (Cuncic, 2021). This is
characterized by placing emphasis on personal feelings, the
latest trends, testimonials, and self-help techniques. Despite
lacking any scientific validations, people flock to these
because of the reasons stated above. Popularized by authors
such as Erich Fromm (read Escape from Freedom), Thomas
Harris (read I’m OK – You’re OK), and John Gray (read Men
are from Mars, Women are from Venus), popular psychology
allows a person to explore their mind and emotions.
In popular culture, hosts such as Oprah Winfrey and Phillip
“Dr. Phil” McGraw popularized a form of therapy where
guests make public confessions about a specific topic while
guest specialists will listen and offer sound advice to them
[guests]. Dubbed as “Oprahfication,” it helped boost the rising
popularity of popular psychology.
o Identity Erosion
Perhaps the most worrisome aspect of popular culture is that
the success of some icons and trends stems from the notion
that some of the working class begin to lose themselves to the
icons and/or trends they wholeheartedly follow, to the point of
devotion. This can be caused by various factors, such as
stress from work, being in incompatible relationships, or even
simply going to school. This is the concept of identity erosion
or self-erosion.
Self-erosion occurs because when a person is busy with
something in their life, their sense of self begins to identify with
the ones they poured themselves in (Vallejos, 2013) – which,
in the case of popular culture, is being the “number one” fan
of something. Should the icon fade, either the self-eroded fan
would either lose their sense of purpose or move on to the
“next big thing.”
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• Theories for Society (Sociological theories)
o Tribalism
Tribalism, which is a popular trend that is mostly based on
false, stereotypical ideas about indigenous people, has
become a big thing in pop culture. People who want to be
celebrities, pop princesses, or hipsters want tobes are
dressing up as Native Americans and wear "war paint."
As an example, taking sorting quizzes to determine your
house in Hogwarts (in the Wizarding World series) allows
one to connect with people sharing the same results, forming
an established “tribe” based on their perceived shared
similarities.
o Culturalism
Individuals are shaped by their culture, and these cultures
make up closed organic wholes. The individual can't leave his
or her culture but can only see himself or herself in it, not
outside of it. This is called "culturalism." It also says that
cultures have special rights and protections, even if they
break individual rights at the same time.
o Marxism
Marxists have divided popular culture into two (2) groups:
those that people have made themselves, like folk art or
stories, and those that were made for them, like commercial
TV, advertising, arcade video games, and music. This is
usually seen as a way to value the former, which are true
expressions of mass creativity, and to devalue the latter,
which are used to keep people calm and dominate culture.
Indeed, Marxist literature on culture has been split into two
main groups: one that looks for and celebrates "authentic"
grassroots culture, and the other that looks into how
consumerism and the society of the spectacle make it easier
for people to dominate culture.
As such, this is where countercultures stem from because
Marxism, in theory, pushes people to challenge the
established norms of certain cultural groups.
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o Postmodernism
Postmodernism (also known as post-structuralism) rejects
universal explanations and instead focuses on the relative
truths of each individual (i.e., postmodernism Equals
relativism). Postmodernism is all about interpretation; reality
is merely what we make of it. Postmodernism emphasizes
personal experience over abstract ideas, stating that personal
experience is inherently imperfect and relative.
People who write about postmodernism agree that, no matter
what else it is or might be, it has something to do with how
popular culture changed in the late 20th century in the
advanced capitalist democracies of the West in the last half of
the century. As a result, no matter how postmodernism is
defined, popular culture is a place where these changes can
be found the easiest. This is because popular culture is a
place where these changes can be found the easiest.
The Critical Theories regarding Popular Culture
Popular culture often demonstrates its intelligence via the
development of new styles to appeal to new audiences, and it has
fragmented into an infinite number of forms, genres, audiences, tones,
styles, and goals, to the point that it cannot be properly discussed as
a whole.
With the help of various theories and concepts, popular culture has
developed a foundation in which audiences can reflect on their society
and culture.
• Genre theory
Genre is derived from the French (and originally Latin) word for
"kind" or "class" (Chandler, 1997).
Chandler (1997) explains that the concept of genre is a creation
of media artists in order to help them classify their works so that
they can identify their target audience and better promote their
work. However, genre theory also indicates that genres might
become overly confined to all of their norms, preventing them from
being varied. Thus, Chandler argues that "Conventional
definitions of the genre tend to be based on the notion that they
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constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or
settings)."
For example, Star Wars and Star Trek are situated in space,
making it a good example of a Sci-Fi text. However, when we take
a look at Passengers (starring Jennifer Lawrence and Christ
Pratt), we can also consider it as an example of Sci-Fi but with a
romance genre on the side, making it a Sci-Fi Romance movie.
This briefly explains that texts are not just limited by conventional
genres; rather, text can be a mix of conventional genres too.
The use of genre theory enables us to examine the type or style
of the text in which helps us understand what the genre is all
about. This theory sets conventions in which we can identify
certain genres of text. For example, there are set of conventions
for a text to be classified as thriller, drama, and comedy, among
others.
• Intersectionality
Coined by American lawyer and professor Kimberlé Crenshaw in
1989, intersectionality explains how individual characteristics
such as race, class, and gender, among others, “intersect” with
one another.
People often speak about racial inequalities as if they were
different from other forms of discrimination like race, gender
orientation, or immigration status. However, people tend to
overlook that an individual may possess all of these
characteristics.
Fan theories are interpretations of work by fans that are debated,
compared, and shared in various fan communities. They forecast
or deduce future content, explain particular occurrences, or
provide other viewpoints. These interpretations are supported by
strong reasoning and specific references to official materials, such
as literary excerpts, frames, or information from other media (Amo
& Roca, 2021).
In the theory of participatory culture, instead of being tagged as
“cultural dupes, social misfits, and mindless consumers,” fans can
be described as “active producers and manipulators of meaning”
(Jenkins, 1992). This led to the constant evolution of hypertextual
creations between fandoms such as fanfics, fan-films, remixes,
and fan-subs.
An example of a fan theory is the concept of headcanon, a form
of discourse where a fan shares the probable origin or cause of
something despite the lack of evidence in a source material, which
the author had unintentionally or deliberately left behind for theory-
crafting.
As an example, the video game Doki Doki Literature Club is a
game riddled with seemingly different pieces of evidence that
point to a larger story, which is prime material for theory-crafting.

For example, a Filipina working and living abroad unknowingly got

fired despite having a good performance might be an indication of
unfair treatment because of her race and gender. In the context of
intersectionality, this suggests that race and gender contributed to
the social injustice the Filipina experienced. Thus, intersectionality
teaches us to recognize our differences and work out how these
distinctions will be expressed in the construction of a group's
political identity.

• Fan theory

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Figure 2. Before playing this game, beware of the twists and prepare a cohesive headcanon
Source: https://store.steampowered.com/app/698780/Doki_Doki_Literature_Club/
The Semiotic Approaches to Popular Culture
Semiotics is simply defined as the study of signs. Since there are
several concepts in the study of signs, depending on the tradition, it
may be called semiology in the Saussurean tradition and semiotics in
Peircean tradition.
• Semiotics by Saussure
A Swiss linguist and semiotician, Ferdinand de Saussure, offered
a dyadic or two-part model of the study of signs. Saussure argued
that sign is composed of:
➢ A signifier (signifiant) which is a
form that the sign takes; and,
➢ The signified (signifi) is the
concept the sign represents.
Today, the signifier is commonly construed to be the material form
of the sign. For example, if a shop has a sign with words written
as ‘closed,’ the signifier will be the letters ‘c-l-o-s-e-d,’ and the
signified concept is that the shop is closed for business.
Basically, the Saussurean model refers to the signifier (signifiant)
as the ‘sound-image’ of the sign, which is also considered as ‘the
psychological imprint of the sound.’
This indicates that the signifier serves as the material or physical
form of the sign (something that a person can see, hear, touch,
smell, or taste). On the other hand, the signified (signifi) is the
mental concept of the sign, which is purely ‘psychological.’
• Semiotics by Peirce
During the same time that Saussure was formulating his model of
sign, American pragmatist philosopher and logician Charles
Sanders Peirce was working with his own model of sign, ‘semiotic
or semiosis,’ and the taxonomies of signs.
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While Saussure offers a dyadic model, Peirce offered a triadic
model, which consists of:
➢ Representamen: The form which the sign takes (but not
necessarily material);
➢ Interpretant: the sense made of the sign (not an interpreter)
➢ Object: to which the sign refers.
In Peirce’s model of signs, he gave an example of which the traffic
sign for ‘stop’ would consist of:
➢ Representamen: red-light facing traffic at an intersection
➢ Interpretant: the idea that the red light indicates that the
vehicles must stop.
➢ Object: vehicles halting
• Semiotics by Barthes
French writer, literary theory, philosopher, critic, and semiotician
Roland Barthes proposed the idea that there are distinct levels of
signification (levels of meaning). The first level of signification is
the denotation, where a sign is made up of a signifier and a
signified. Connotation is a second-order signification that employs
the initial sign (signifier and signified) as its signifier and adds an
extra signified to it.
Simply, denotation refers to the definitional (dictionary definition)
or literary meaning of a sign, while connotation refers to the socio-
cultural and personal association of the sign.
For example, the denotative meaning of a white dove is a small
breed of seed or fruit-eating bird (pigeon) that is commonly
domesticated. Its connotative meaning, meanwhile, can be a new
beginning, love, peace, prosperity, and fidelity, among others.
• Multimodality
Reading Images (1996) and Multimodal Discourse (2001) by
Kress and Van Leeuwen marked the beginning of multimodality in
linguistics.
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In multimodality, linguists study not only language but also visual
features and elements such as images, color, the layout of pages,
and even material objects and architecture.
In simplest terms, multimodality refers to the use of various
sensory and communication channels to convey meaning in a
message. In a way, every communication is multimodal since
meaning is formed not just via words but also through fonts,
pictures, page design, and so on. Multimodality has grown even
more important in the digital era, particularly for language learners
who rely on many channels to “pick up” meaning in a target
language.
• Recontextualization
Machine and Mayr (2012) defined that “recontextualization always
involves transformation, and what exactly gets transformed
depends on the interests, goals, and values of the context into
which the practice is recontextualized.”
This indicates that in some texts, when some elements are
changed, replaced, removed, or simplified, there is a presumed
idea that recontextualization has taken place. In
recontextualization, these elements can be described using the
classical types of transformation mainly:
➢ Deletion: This is the process wherein some aspects are
deleted in any social practice (such as people, action, setting,
etc.) as no representations in social practice can represent all
the aspects of it.
E.g., On war monuments of World War I, the monuments
erected in Europe mention ‘giving’ and ‘sacrifice’ and do not
mention pain, suffering, or insanity.
➢ Addition: This is the process where elements were added to
represent the text even further.
E.g., On the war monuments mentioned earlier, the materials
used to add meanings such as solidity and timelessness.
Some elements and symbols are also added that link the
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monument to some ancient rites that suggest that the event is
historical and spiritual.
➢ Substitution: This is the process wherein there are changes
or rearrangements by abstractions and generalizations in
order to represent events or texts accordingly.
E.g., On war monuments, the soldiers are not life-like figures
but often larger than usual. The acts of killing were substituted
by the act of slowly walking forward or standing solidly on
guard.
➢ Evaluation: This is the process where the events and people
are generalized in the text.
E.g., On war monuments, people find their poses in high
ideals and values. The monuments can also imply that the
country will not forget the heroism of those who sacrificed
during WWI.
References:
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Chandler, D. (1997, January 1). An introduction to genre theory.
ResearchGate.
Chandler, D. (2007). Semiotics: The basics. Routledge.
Coaston, J. (2019, May 28). The intersectionality wars.
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highlight/2019/5/20/18542843/intersectionality-
conservatism-law-race-gender-discrimination
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de Amo, J., & Roca, A. (2021, June 10). Mechanisms for
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Dressman, M. (2019, November 29). Multimodality and language
learning. Wiley Online
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Library. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781119
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theory-and-theorists/fandom-and-participatory-culture/
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Illinois Library (2021). Queer theory: Background. Author.
https://guides.library.illinois.edu/queertheory/background
Jenkins, H. (1992). Textual poachers: Television fans & participatory
culture.
Machin, D., & Mayr, A. (2012). How to do critical discourse analysis:
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https://www.simplypsychology.org/carl-jung.html.
Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences (n.d.). What is
psychology?. Ohio State University College of Arts and
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https://psychology.osu.edu/about/what-psychology
Schaefer, D. (2019, September 4). What is affect theory? Donovan
Schaefer, University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved from
http://donovanschaefer.com/what-is-affect-theory/.
truTV (2016). Adam ruins everything – Why solitary confinement
needs to be banned [video]. YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2wTjWC45kA
Vallejos, L.M. (2013). Recognizing self-erosion is key to reversing it.
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She coined the term ‘Intersectionality’ over 30 years ago. Here’s what
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intersectionality/

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