Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Apr 8, 2025
Open Peer Review Period: Apr 8, 2025 - Jun 3, 2025
Date Accepted: May 27, 2025
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Relationship between fear of missing out and social media fatigue: A cross-lagged panel design
ABSTRACT
Background:
In today's digital landscape, social media proliferation offers easier access to others' information and activities but also introduces challenges like social media fatigue (SMF). Previous studies linked the fear of missing out (FoMO) to SMF, yet the directional relationship remains unclear.
Objective:
To examine the relationship between FoMO and SMF over time among college students.
Methods:
This study employed a longitudinal approach, surveying college students via questionnaires at two time points with a two-month interval, and descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and a cross-lagged model analysis were conducted subsequently.
Results:
A total of 862 valid questionnaires were matched across the two data collections. Findings show that initial FoMO and SMF significantly predict their respective levels after two months (β = .300, P < .001; β = .351, P < .001). Additionally, initial FoMO positively predicted subsequent SMF (β = .067, P = .003), and vice versa (β = .156, P < .001).
Conclusions:
There is a bidirectional relationship between FoMO and SMF among college students, which means they can influence each other. This relationship perpetuates a negative cycle. The findings extend existing research and provide insights for developing mental health programs for college students.
Citation
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Copyright
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