Psychology of the Kardashians: will they ever not be on television?

Although their 20-season-long show “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” ended in 2021, the family announced it would return to reality television with their new Hulu series “The Kardashians.” Photo illustration by EMILY PARIS, Staff Photographer

With custom Rolls-Royce cars, mansions splashed all over Architectural Digest and baby names that relate more to weather reports, it may seem hard to relate to the Kardashians.

But to the dismay of many viewers, the Kardashians are just like all other human beings: they have break-ups, family gatherings and celebratory moments — but usually on a scale that would suck out the life from the average bank account. Julie Theis, also known as Psych Advice on TikTok, told The Panther that — expenses aside — the Kardashians are a family just like anyone else.

"Even though they live such unique lives (compared) to how we live, they're still a family, so we're going to see different family dynamics play out," Theis said. "With all of these dynamics, what the viewer could learn — if they put on that lens of like, 'What can I learn?’ and look at it critically — is there (are) so many lessons that can still apply to us because they are experiencing this human experience while living these lavish lives."

While human nature may still be apparent even in the Kardashians, the family starred in their reality show "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" for over 20 seasons on the E! Network. But, after 14 years, the family decided in September 2020 that the show would come to an end (cue Kim's iconic ugly crying face). 

However, a few months later in December, they announced a new reality show would air on Hulu in 2022 titled "The Kardashians" — with its first episode April 14 becoming Hulu's most-watched premiere in America.

With conflicting messages of will-they-won't-they step away from TV, the new reality series begs the question of whether the Kardashians can ever not feel the desire to be on screen. The psychology of the celebrity family, explained in Theis' TikTok videos analyzing the Kardashians’ interpersonal relationships, is not very different from someone retiring from their job.

"If you look at people who retire, they experience super high levels of depression (after retiring)," Theis said. "And for older men who have just come out of retirement, they are one of the highest risk suicide populations, because they're losing that identity of themselves that they've built around. I would assume that it's like (the show) became so centralized for their identity. Kim, Kris, all of them — that is their identity. So I would be super curious if they did experience depression or anxiety not being on that show, because in a way, they were losing their identity."

Theis, who received her masters degree in psychology, has over 220,000 followers on TikTok and created a series dedicated to breaking down the psychological interactions between the Kardashians and their relationships on television. Another possible theory Theis noted as to why the Kardashians are addicted to being on screen is the dopamine rush felt when episodes are aired, along with the countless billboards and promotional media splashed all over the internet. 

"The spotlight is an addiction to people," Theis said. "Justin Bieber described part of his drug addiction was due to these high dopamine levels of performing on stage and experiencing this fandom when (he was) young."

Whether it be Kim losing her diamond earring in the ocean or Scott prank calling Kris pretending to be her nephew Todd Kraines, junior biochemistry and political science double major Destiny Ly has a hard time picking her favorite Kardashian moment over the years. But even though the episodes may serve as capstone memories to the family, Ly told The Panther she wonders if they have continued to film a new series as a means of keeping their family connected.

"I think (the Kardashians) just used to (being on screen), and maybe they're scared of change — (maybe) they just didn't feel right without cameras on them all at the same time," Ly said. "I feel like (reality TV) is a way for them to stick together. I know that in the last season (of ‘Keeping up with the Kardashians’), Scott was scared that they were never going to see each other again, and the show brought them together, because they were all filming constantly. So maybe they just don't want to lose touch with their family."

Creative producing professor Ed Lavelle told The Panther it is common in the media for people to announce the end of their career but then suddenly change their minds due to their passion or their urge for more money.

"We think about some of these singers who say, 'Oh, this is our last concert’ and that's the 12th last concert they've had," Lavelle said. "I think that as long as someone's willing to watch and pay for it, then they're gonna go. Even when we're told this is the last one, we know, probably in the back of our heads, never say never."

With the series releasing weekly episodes on Thursdays, “The Kardashians” sets a different tone than their original reality series — with a focus on humanizing the family through Kim's shift to focusing on motherhood and becoming a lawyer. Theis said the contrast of the new program could mean the Kardashians are too self-aware of what their audience wants. 

"It just felt like all of them were more confident than how I remember 'Keeping Up With The Kardashians' as being," Theis said. "I almost wonder if they become too self-aware for us to get real reality TV. It almost was a cocky feeling of like, 'Oh yeah, we know what we're doing, we know what the fans want.' Reality TV is supposed to be more real, raw and catch you off guard."

While it may be fascinating to nitpick every detail of celebrities, Theis said analyzing the relationships and behaviors in pop-culture, as exemplified through the Kardashians, can make it easier to understand your own interpersonal dynamics. 

"With everything that was going on with (Kim) and Kanye, I did a lot of breakdowns about her divorce and some of the narcissistic tendencies that we're seeing from Kanye," Theis said. "And I liked that a lot, because there's so many people that came out and they're like, 'This is my ex, this was my last relationship.'"

The first two episodes of "The Kardashians" are now streaming on Hulu. New episodes are released every Thursday.