Adrian C. North, Vicky Bland, and Nicky Ellis (2005). Distinguishing heroes from celebrities. British Journal of Psychology, 96, 39-52.

Although numerous studies have concerned both ‘greatness’ and ‘celebrity worship’, little previous research has overtly investigated the psychological bases for distinguishing ‘heroes’ from ‘celebrities’. Study 1 indicated that, in response to 13 attitudinal measures, participants’ responses to heroes could be summarised in terms of ‘emotional attachment’, ‘drive for affiliation’, and ‘ordinariness’, whereas the corresponding factors for celebrities were ‘drive for affiliation’, ‘disdain’, and ‘ordinariness’. Study 2 investigated how certain individuals might come to be perceived as producing ‘great’ outputs. Using a vignette, manipulations of ‘dead versus alive’ and ‘good conduct versus bad conduct’ mediated perceptions of the emotional significance of a pop song. The results are used to generate some tentative theoretical explanations for the differences between heroism and celebrity.

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