Parasocial relationships are one-sided, socio-emotional bonds that audiences develop with their favorite media celebrities and fictional characters. These relationships lack mutuality, but maintain importance as components of people's perceived social networks. Dr. Bond's research examines how these relationships develop, maintain, and dissolve. He is particularly interested in how marginalized populations may use parasocial relationships to compensate for a lack of real-life connection to marginalized others, and how parasocial relationships with marginalized celebrities or characters can influence stereotypes and prejudices.

Dr. Bond's latest work investigating the function of parasocial relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic has received widespread attention from popular press outlets, including ABC News, TIME magazine, and Utah Public Radio.

Though we would typically accept the premise that parents socialize their children, children can also socialize their parents. This line of research examines how LGBTQ youth use shared moments of media exposure to initiate socialization of their parents. That is, when LGBTQ youth are co-viewing with their parents and they are exposed to LGBTQ characters, how might those young people employ these media moments as opportunities to teach their parents about their sexual and gender identities? This line of research, a collaboration with Dr. Louise Mares and graduate student Anthony Chen at the University of Wisconsin, investigates these questions of mutual socialization between parents and their queer children.