Part of HuffPost Wellness. ©2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved.
Wellnesshealthy livingfear of missing outVideo
Life Dissatisfaction Linked With Fear Of Missing Out, Study Finds
Got FOMO? You May Be Less Satisfied With Life, Study Finds
May 14, 2013, 05:40 PM EDT | Updated Jul 14, 2013
Young girl outside
By: Stephanie Pappas, LiveScience Senior Writer
Published: 05/14/2013 02:19 PM EDT on LiveScience
Worried that everyone else is doing something cool without you? You may have FOMO -- Fear of Missing Out. Even worse, a new study finds, you may be less satisfied with your life than the average person.
People high in FOMO, as the online acronym would have it, feel less competent, less autonomous and less connected with others than people who don't worry about being left out, according to the study published in the July issue of the journal Computers in Human Behavior.
But what's bad for individuals may just be good for Facebook: People high in FOMO were also more likely to use social media, seemingly driven by a need to see what's going on when they're not around. [What Really Scares People: Top 10 Phobias]
"Fear of missing out acts as an important kind of waystation," study researcher Andrew Przybylski, a psychologist at the University of Essex in England, told LiveScience. "It's the thing that connects a lot of what we think of as individual differences to social media."
Przybylski was inspired to study FOMO by a 2011 New York Times article on the phenomenon, in which a writer bemoaned her inability to enjoy a nice evening at home as her friends tweeted, Instagrammed and otherwise broadcasted their amazing evenings out right to her smartphone.
"I was stunned that no one in psychology or cyberpsychology or communications had actually done any research on this topic," Przybylski said.
First, Przybylski and his colleagues needed a way to measure FOMO. They tested a 32-item questionnaire on 672 men and 341 women, most from the United States and India and the rest scattered around the globe, and narrowed the questions down to 10 that focused on people's psychological fear of missing out. (A version of the questionnaire is now online at ratemyfomo.com.)
Next, the researchers used that questionnaire to rate the FOMO of a national sample of 2,079 22- to 65-year-old United Kingdom residents. They also asked the participants about their social media engagement, their life satisfaction and how autonomous, competent and connected to others they felt in their daily lives.
The less people felt autonomy, competence and connectedness in their daily lives, the more they felt FOMO, the results revealed. People high in FOMO also used social media more.
Social media and FOMO
It's not completely clear from the survey whether using social media drives FOMO or whether FOMO drives social media use, Przybylski said, but a statistical analysis of the data suggests that the lack of autonomy, competence and connectedness drives FOMO, which in turn leads to the urge to check Facebook and Twitter constantly. It's likely that FOMO varies according to a person's experiences, Przybylski said, but the study couldn't get at how the feeling changes over time.
A third study of 87 undergraduates found that people high in FOMO had more positive emotional experiences and more negative emotional experiences when checking Facebook than people without much fear of missing out. In other words, FOMO is linked to more intense emotions around social media. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the high-FOMO students were also more likely than their low-FOMO counterparts to be checking Facebook and other social media sites during their class lectures.
Even more frightening, Przybylski said, was that high-FOMO students were more likely to admit to distracted driving habits, including texting or emailing while driving. Fear of missing out likely has to do with people's ability to self-regulate and focus on the moment, he said.
"For people who feel very secure in their relationships, their relationships are important to them, but they don't feel compelled to always be connected," Przybylski said. Social media may not create the tendency, he said, but it likely exacerbates it by making sharing so easy.
"Sometimes," he said, "it's good to insulate yourself from the world of possibilities."
Follow Stephanie Pappas on Twitter and Google+. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on LiveScience.com.
7 Things That Will Make You Happy
Facebook's Global Reach (Infographic)
Facebook Security Quiz: Are You Safe?
Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. ]]>
healthy livingfear of missing outVideo FOMO
More In Wellness
These Quick Hacks Can Snap You Out Of A Bad Mood
Study Offers Cautionary Tale About Teens, Weight-Loss Surgery And Alcohol
28 Products So Effective Reviewers Called Them A 'Miracle'
Nordstrom Has So Many Bras With Five-Star Ratings
32 Beauty Products You'll Be Glad You Impulse Bought
A Bunch Of Le Creuset Cookware Is On Sale Right Now
34 TikTok-Approved Products So Helpful For A Bunch Of Small Problems
An essential daily guide to achieving the good life
Subscribe to our lifestyle email.
9 Quick Ways To Refocus If You're Distracted At Work
21 Things Parents Swore They'd Never Do (And Totally Did Anyway)
He Created A Bar Where People Can Connect... Without Alcohol
Here's What's Leaving Netflix In February
Are You A Failed Flosser? This Will Convince You To Finally Stick To A Routine.
11 Mistakes Tourists Make While Visiting Palm Springs
This Cozy Scarf Doesn't Leave Your Hands Out In The Cold. Here's Where To Get One.
15 Surprisingly Cool Electric Kettles You'll Actually Want To Display
Here's What's Coming To Netflix In February
The Best And Worst 'Healthy' Drinks At The Grocery Store, Ranked By Nutritionists
31 Winter Style Essentials For Anyone Whose Favorite Color Is Black
This Viral Lululemon Bag Is Always Sold Out — But Amazon Has A $19 Dupe
17 Reviewer-Beloved Amazon Bathing Suits For (Way) Under $40
No One Will Ever Guess Your Trendy Activewear Is From Walmart
What Is 'Sad Beige' Parenting, And How Did We Get Here?
The Internet Gave This Dad-To-Be Some Seriously Heartwarming And Helpful Advice
Hosting A Super Bowl Party? These Smart TVs Are On Sale At Walmart Right Now
The Rudest, Most Infuriating Things People Do At Coffee Shops
Cat Owners Aren't Taking Them To The Vet Enough. That's A Problem.
A Cult-Favorite Mayonnaise And 14 Other Things Our Editors Bought In January
The Best Ugg Dupes, According To TikTok
40 Little Things Any Home Chef Will Likely Want In Their Kitchen
This Simple Scandinavian Bed Hack Could Be The Key To Better Sleep
Some Of Allbirds' Bestselling Shoes And Sneakers Are On Sale
This New Korean Sci-Fi Film Is The Top Movie On Netflix
This Sitcom Spinoff Is The Top Show On Netflix Right Now
Your Body On Alcohol: How It Affects Your Heart, Liver, Weight And Cancer Risk
The Highest-Rated Espresso Machines At Target For Under $200