Mukbang in Turkey as a Virtual Community. Socialization and Parasocial Interaction: A Netnographic Analysis

Abstract

Introduction: It is well known that social media networks have led to changes in many traditional phenomena and events. The changes and transformations of these networks on traditional food culture have been particularly strong. In recent years, videos featuring food and sounds in the foreground and involving excessive food consumption in live broadcasts or pre-prepared videos have gained rapid popularity. This form of eating, which emerged in South Korea and is called mukbang, has quickly spread all over the world. Although numerous studies have been conducted in the rest of the world and mukbang videos have become widespread in Turkey in terms of both broadcasters and viewers, there is no study on this subject in the country. The aim of this study is to analyze digital socialization and parasocial interaction as practices of virtual community within the Turkish context. Methodology: In the present study, 7,139 comments on three mukbang videos published on YouTube in Turkey were analyzed using a netnographic methodology. Coding was conducted in NVivo. The unit of analysis was the individual comment; emoji-only entries were excluded. The initial codebook was developed from literature and exploratory reads. Two coders independently coded a stratified subset, and disagreements were resolved by consensus. An audit trail was maintained and constant comparison was used to stabilize categories. Results: Based on user comments, it was observed that viewers developed positive and negative attitudes towards the content. As a result of the study, it was determined that mukbang videos contribute to socialization and body control as well as cultural interaction. Viewers co-construct a sense of belonging to online communities, and parasocial interactions with content creators (e.g., terms of intimacy such as “sister”) are evident. However, users also attribute negative outcomes such as overconsumption, addiction, digital loneliness, and transformations in food culture. Discussion: According to the findings, socialization is the primary motivation for watching mukbang videos on social media. These videos give users a sense of belonging to a specific online community. Parasocial relationships emerge as an important driver of engagement, indicating that users not only consume content but also develop one-sided relational patterns. This duality reveals both community-building potential and critical risks linked to consumerism and isolation. Theoretical connections can be drawn to critical theory and digital activism, which frame mukbang as both a space of participation and a site of power relations. Conclusions: As a result of the study, findings in line with previous studies conducted in the rest of the world were obtained, as well as findings that will expand the research on mukbang videos. It was determined that mukbang videos also serve as a tool for cultural interaction. Limitations include the focus on YouTube only, the use of public self-reported comments (without objective measures of psychological states), and temporal/channel constraints.