Analysis of Success Factors of Popular TV Series from the

Perspective of Psychology

Yang Gao

Hongwen School Qingdao Campus, Qingdao, Shandong, China

Keywords: Psychological Resonance, Nostalgia, Audience Engagement.

Abstract: With the development and the prosperity of the entertainment and film industries, blockbuster TV series have

become a global cultural phenomenon. These TV series not only attract audiences with their unique themes

but also achieve emotional resonance with the audience by accurately grasping the psychological needs of the

audience. Through case analysis, as well as psychological analysis and business analysis, this paper explores

the key factors for the success of popular TV series, and puts forward suggestions on avoiding routines,

strengthening logic, and using psychological investment. The results not only reveal the multifaceted role of

psychology in the success of TV series but also provide a psychological perspective reference for film

production, marketing and investment, which has important theoretical and practical significance.

1 INTRODUCTION

In recent years, with the vigorous development of the

entertainment and film and television industries, the

popularity of series has become a global cultural

phenomenon. From the nostalgia-filled horror movie

Stranger Things to the social-reality debunking Squid

Game, these popular TV shows have captured the

attention of audiences around the world and caused a

lot of discussion. However, the success of these

shows does not depend solely on unique shooting

methods and novel subject matter. The deep inner

resonance and satisfaction of psychological needs

they provide to the audience give the works more far-

reaching artistic value. This phenomenon also shows

the importance of psychology in film and television

production and marketing.

Previous studies have shown that psychological

elements can affect the audience's emotional response,

mental state, identity psychology, and even affect the

audience's willingness to share. For example,

previous literature has explored the effects of mystery

on the psychology of the audience, and how suspense

and the unknown can engage the audience and elicit

emotional resonance. Therefore, it is particularly

important to explore how to make good use of

audience psychology in film production and media

marketing (Ikemi, 2005). Hence, this article will

explore how popular TV series use psychological

principles to attract and retain viewers. Through case

studies of two popular TV series, Stranger Things and

Squid Game, we will delve into the psychological

mechanisms of marketing these shows, from narrative

style to emotional resonance and then to cultural

promotion. This article will provide a psychological

perspective and useful information and assistance for

series production, marketing and investment. The

research significance of this paper is to reveal the

multifaceted role of psychology in the success of TV

series, and provide useful advice for the film and

television industry. For example, producers can

create more popular content that resonates with

audiences based on these psychological principles, or

investors can make smarter decisions based on

psychological analysis. This article will review

previous research on the topic, exploring

psychological and emotional responses and

marketing mechanisms, including case studies,

psychological and business insights, potential risks

and conclusions.

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

This article will clarify the relationship between

psychology and the success of movies and TV series

and explore how popular TV series attract audiences

through psychological means to achieve emotional

Gao, Y.

Analysis of Success Factors of Popular TV Series from the Perspective of Psychology.

DOI: 10.5220/0013989700004916

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Public Relations and Media Communication (PRMC 2025), pages 263-267

ISBN: 978-989-758-778-8

263

resonance. In this section, we will discuss the

application of psychology to TV series, the success

factors of hit TV series, and the key findings of

previous studies. Research on film and television

works and psychology can be traced back to the 20th

century. Some scholars believe that film is essentially

a reflection of mind. In this book, film is a

psychological game in which the creation and

viewing process are closely related to human

cognition and emotion (Münsterberg, 1916).

Research in the 21st century has shown that viewers'

preferences for movie genres are closely linked to the

brain's response to emotions. Film and television

works can meet the psychological needs of different

audiences through different narrative and emotional

strategies (Zwiky et al., 2024). With the development

of psychological theory, more and more studies have

emerged on the psychological elements in film and

television works on their impact to the audience's

emotional response. Although a large number of

studies have explored the application of psychology

to film and television dramas, most research samples

mainly focus on Western films and television dramas,

with relatively few studies on Asian dramas. By

analyzing Stranger Things and Squid Games, this

paper will further explore the role of cultural context

and social communication in the success of the series,

filling in the gaps of existing research.

3 CASE ANALYSIS

3.1 Squid Game

Squid Game is a South Korean television series

produced by Netflix and released in 2021. The series

tells the story of hundreds of helpless people who are

invited by a mysterious organization to participate in

a survival game to verify human nature in order to

seek a chance to live and finally get the prize money.

The theme of the game is a traditional Korean

children's game, including "Red Light, Green Light”

and "dalgona candy challenged". The series reflects

many real social issues, such as the gap between the

rich and the poor, social inequality, and the problem

between humanity and survival. The game in the

series is to live or to die. It evoked the fear of survival

from the audience and generated their emotional

resonance greatly. The series grasped wide attention

on social media platforms. Besides, the traditional

Korean cultural elements in the series helped their

promotion extensively. Within its first month of

release, the series achieved an impressive 111 million

views. It became one of the most popular shows in

Netflix history.

3.2 Stranger Things

Stranger Things is an American science fiction

thriller television series produced by NETFLIX that

aired in the United States in 2016. Set in an American

small town in the '80s, the series followed a group of

children who discovered secret government

experiments and paranormal phenomena while

searching for their missing friends. The series quickly

became a global hit after its broadcast, attracting a

large audience. By 2021, Stranger Things has been

watched by more than 196 million viewers on Netflix.

The story is combined with science fiction elements,

and through the psychological experience of nostalgia

and suspense and fear, the discussion of friendship,

courage and growth has aroused the emotional

resonance of the audience. A case study of Stranger

Things shows that psychological elements play a key

role in the show's success. In addition, the lines and

portrayal of the characters sparked a huge discussion

on social media. It brought huge traffic and popularity

to the show. By 2024, the hashtag #strangerthings on

TikTok had been viewed 135.3 billion times.

4 ANALYSIS

4.1 Survival Fear and Psychological

Resonance

For film and TV programs, raising the audience's

emotional resonance is the key to their success.

Murray Smith once pointed out that the appeal of

character is multifaceted, extending beyond mere

appearance or behavior. It also relates to the

character’s ability to evoke emotional resonance with

the audience through both narrative and visual

storytelling techniques. Furthermore, Resonance is

not only an emotional response but also involves the

audience's identification with the characters and

stories. It will bring the audience into the programs

imagining themselves to be or to be with the

characters. Positive emotional resonance will better

the experience of watching, thus it will enhance the

film 's recognition. However, how does it achieve

social resonance? The answer is obvious - clever plot

design. The plot of film and television work is not

only the framework of the story, but also the bridge

to establish emotional communication with the

audience (Smith, 2022). In "Squid Game", the creator

carefully designed the plot, an in-depth discussion of

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the social reality of the common social problem -

survival fear, to arouse the audience's resonance. In

The book The Horror Film: An Introduction, it is

proposed that when the audience watches horror

works, fear, anxiety and other emotions will be

aroused, so that the audience will associate the fear

emotions in the film with their own experiences

(Worland, 2024). For example, in the "dalgona candy

challenged", some people get a simple and easy round

sugar cake, while some people get an umbrella pattern

that will be broken if they are not careful, which

implies the unequal distribution of resources in

today's society. The main character enters the game

in order to win money to pay his mother's medical

bills. However, in the course of the game, the

protagonist gradually realizes that the class

solidification of society and the gap between the rich

and the poor cannot be easily changed through

individual power. Although the main character

eventually wins the game, the main character's

mother dies during the game, which exposes the main

character to social injustice. In addition, another

character in the drama is a graduate of an elite

university who takes part in the game because he has

incurred huge debts due to embezzlement of public

funds. Ultimately, his story reflects that ordinary

people, even if they have a high degree, cannot

change their origins and escape the difficulties

brought by social class. The contestants in the drama

gamble their lives for the huge prize money, which

deeply reflects the cruel competition and inability and

struggle of the people at the bottom in the face of the

miserable life. The stories of these characters reflect

the common problems in today's society, allowing the

audience to see their own shadows in them, thus

triggering strong emotional resonance and deep

thinking. This kind of social resonance not only

enhances the influence of work but also promotes

people's attention and reflection on real social

problems.

4.2 Narrative Style and Cultural

Background of Nostalgia

Deep exploration of Nostalgia and cultural

background is the key to the popularity of Stranger

Things. The classic pop culture elements of the 1980s

gave the retro visual style which evoked the memory

of childhood. The scream was full of Nostalgia. In

terms of props, the show makes extensive use of retro

costumes, props and set designs, such as tape players,

retro video game consoles and other iconic items of

the 1980s. In addition, some of the plot settings of the

show pay homage to classics such as E.T., Stand By

Me, and the Goonies, which are culturally resonant

with the audience. Previous research has shown that

nostalgia as a highly social emotion enhances an

individual's sense of social connection with others.

For example, by recalling past experiences, nostalgia

can make people feel the continuity and meaning of

life and inspire individual optimism and positive

actions towards the future (Juhl & Biskas, 2023). This

emotional resonance not only helps the audience to

establish a sense of belonging to youth, family, or a

particular era, but also to understand and strengthen

themselves through the experiences of the characters.

Second, it is about the unique plot setting of the

drama -- an upside-down world which is a parallel

universe full of unknown and uncertainty. Butler uses

this setting as a metaphor referring to the people's fear

during contemporary life in the face of rapid changes

of technology, environment and society. He

especially focused on the time when the story is set in

the 1980s, when the United States was in the midst of

the Cold War and the whole society is full of anxiety

and fear. Stranger Things involved the audience in

nostalgia for the 1980s first. The worry and fear of

that time were correspondingly portrayed (Butler,

2017). In addition, although the core of the series is a

sci-fi horror story, each character is given distinct

personality characteristics and storylines. Multiple

storylines, such as friendship, youth, growth, and

family relationships, give depth to the entire series.

4.3 Audience Immersive Experience

Experiential marketing is a marketing strategy that

creates positive emotions, deep feelings and

memories for consumers by creating interactive

experiences with brand products in the real world.

This experience can include product trials, interactive

activities, and environmental creation (Gunawan,

2022). Netflix successfully promoted Stranger Things

through IP derivative and scene marketing through

experiential marketing. For example, Netflix

designed a creative billboard for the Hawkins Power

element of the show. Audiences can directly call and

chat with the characters in the show. In addition, the

publicity team has also carried out some themed

exhibitions around the world. They've got all these

classic props and iconic scenes from the show on

display, and there are interactive areas where you can

really dive into the world of Stranger Things. As

nostalgia culture becomes more popular, it has

developed into a cultural industry. Hassler Forest

pointed out that the success of this nostalgia strategy

lies in its ability to combine the emotional needs of

users with commercial interests. By taking advantage

Analysis of Success Factors of Popular TV Series from the Perspective of Psychology

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of the audience's nostalgia, it attracts a wider audience

and stimulates their consumption behavior (Hassler-

Forest, 2020). Stranger Things has also spawned a lot

of co-branding. Stranger Things in recent years with

a number of brands and areas of co-branding derived

of a lot of peripheral products, such as the joint launch

of retro sneakers with Nike, and cooperation with

LEGO brand reversible design Lego sets.

4.4 Business Operation and

Communication

The reason why Squid Game quickly became a global

hot topic after its launch is inseparable from the key

role played by its viral communication mechanism in

the publicity of the play, especially the discussion and

sharing on social media, which promoted the global

influence of the play (Ahmed et al., 2022). Through

the "echo chamber effect", the discussion and sharing

of influential figures on social media attracted the

attention of a large number of users with the same

views, further expanding the influence of the series

(Cinelli et al., 2021). According to TikTok data,

challenges and imitation videos related to "Squid

Game" are popular, such as "dalgona candy

challenged" and related topics have been played more

than 2.47 billion times. MrBeast, an American

YouTuber, has launched a live-action version of the

Squid Game of the same name, which recreates the

scenes and rules of the show, and attracts participants

from around the world with a huge bonus. The video

has been viewed 760 million times and has become a

global social media hotspot. What is more, the reason

for its popularity is also attributable to Netflix's

business strategy of releasing all the episodes at once,

encouraging users to continue to watch the series.

This behavior not only increases the viewing time of

users but also enables them to get feedback and

opinions quickly from the audience, and thus better

promote the work.

4.5 Psychological Investment

Mechanism

In recent years, with the popularity of drama series,

its unique production mode and market performance

attracted a large amount of capital influx. The time for

production of these shows is considerably short. For

example, the first season of Squid Game took only

five months to produce. Some other short series can

be completed within 1-2 weeks. On the one hand, it

can be brought to the market quickly and meet the

immediate needs of the audience. On the other hand,

the cost of production is much lower than other films

or TV shows. For instance, the total production cost

of the first season of the Squid Game was $21.4

million and the cost of a single episode was $2.4

million. The high return on investment in short series

attracts a lot of capital and talents. The short series

market gradually forms the Matthew effect which

promotes the output of high-quality series and

stabilizes the market position of series.

5 SUGGETIONS

5.1 Routinization

Over-reliance on violent or thriller elements risks

audience psychological fatigue and desensitization.

Creators should counter homogenization through

innovative approaches: introducing novel themes,

adopting experimental narratives (e.g., interactive

storytelling), and addressing pressing social issues.

Pre-release evaluations must combine psychological

surveys with audience feedback mechanisms to

measure engagement thresholds and ensure content

balances creativity with mental health considerations.

5.2 Logic Vulnerability and Audience

Trust

The creator should review the logic of the script

during the writing stage to ensure that the plot is

reasonable and new. In some subjects, such as

medical astronomy, etc., professional teams can be

hired to review. In addition, opinions can be collected

by questionnaires and interviews among some

audience members. Avoid logical loopholes which

can reduce the trust of the audience. By integrating

interdisciplinary expertise and empirical data,

scriptwriters can enhance narrative credibility and

emotional resonance, fostering deeper audience

immersion.

5.3 Technical Means and Marketing

Methods

Leveraging advanced visual effects and immersive

soundscapes, creators can design interactive

experiences like real-time polls or branching

narratives, fostering deeper audience engagement.

Social media platforms amplify organic reach

through viral challenges, fan art campaigns, and UGC

initiatives, while data analytics track hashtag trends

to optimize promotional strategies. Cross-media

extensions—such as companion podcasts or AR

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filters-extend narrative worlds, encouraging

sustained fan interaction and community-driven

growth.

5.4 Investment in the Direction in

Psychology

Audience psychological analysis-using personality

typologies and emotion recognition algorithms—

uncovers latent preferences through neuroimaging

and psychometric modeling. By quantifying

engagement via GSR and eye-tracking, creators map

cognitive responses to narrative elements. Investors

leverage these insights through predictive analytics

integrating psychological principles and market

trends, using ML models to forecast ROI based on

audience risk tolerance. This interdisciplinary

approach aligns creative vision with audience needs,

minimizing financial uncertainty through data-driven

decisions.

6 CONCLUSION

This article explores the key role of psychology in the

success of TV series by analyzing hit shows such as

Stranger Things and Squid Games. The study found

that these episodes successfully attracted the audience

and achieved widespread dissemination through the

path of suspense setting, emotional resonance and

social communication. For example, Squid Game

reflects the social reality through the survival game

setting, arousing the audience's resonance to social

issues; Stranger Things, on the other hand, use

nostalgia and cultural fear to evoke emotional

identification. In addition, experiential marketing and

the spread of social media further expanded the

impact of the series.

Looking forward to the future, with the

continuous changes in the psychological needs of the

audience, such as the emergence of internal anxiety,

social pressure and other problems, creators of series

need to pay more attention to these psychological

changes, explore new themes, and maintain the

innovation and attractiveness of the series. At the

same time, it is suggested the producers of series

should pay more attention to the application of

psychological factors and enhance the artistic value

and market competitiveness of the works by

enhancing the emotional resonance of the audience.

Investors should also pay attention to psychological

analysis and use it to predict the market performance

of the drama to make more informed investment

decisions. The research results of this paper not only

reveal the multifaceted role of psychology in the

success of TV series but also provide a psychological

perspective reference for film production, marketing

and investment, which has important theoretical and

practical significance.

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