Linking fear of missing out and psychological well-being: a multi-country study
ISSN: 0736-3761
Article publication date: 7 May 2024
Issue publication date: 10 June 2024
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to understand the association between the fear of missing out (FOMO) and its impact on psychological well-being (PWB). The mediating effect of anxiety and moderating effects of social media engagement (SME) and resilience on the association mentioned above are also examined.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a mix of attachment theory and cognitive-motivational-relational theory to understand the hypothesized relationship using a diverse sample of international respondents from South Asia, South East Asia and the Middle East. The data from 612 respondents was collected using SurveyMonkey. The authors have used Hayes’ PROCESS Macro to test the hypothesised relationships.
Findings
The results revealed that anxiety acts as a mediator between FOMO and PWB, while SME and resilience act as moderators in reducing the impact of FOMO on anxiety and the impact of anxiety on PWB, respectively.
Originality/value
The work extends the existing theorization and points out the merits of using SME and resilience as moderators and anxiety as a mediator for understanding the association between FOMO and PWB.
Keywords
Citation
Srivastava, S., Rishi, B. and Belwal, R. (2024), "Linking fear of missing out and psychological well-being: a multi-country study", Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 41 No. 4, pp. 391-405. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-02-2023-5837
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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