Félelem a kimaradástól. Az önértékelés, okoseszköz-függőség és nemi különbségek szerepe serdülők körében

Abstract

Background and aims: Fear of missing out (FoMO) refers to a feeling of anxiety that one might miss out on experiences others are having. This prompts people to constantly monitor the behaviour of others, typically on social media platforms using smart devices. FoMO can have problematic social, emotional, and behavioral consequences, especially among adolescents.Research suggests that adolescent girls may be particularly vulnerable, however, the relationship between gender and FoMO remains unclear. Our study investigates gender differences in FoMO considering self-esteem and smartphone addiction in Hungarian adolescents.
Methods: We analyse cross-sectional data collected from 266 adolescents (144 female and 122 male, M: 14,16 year SD: 1,65) in a path model, where the effects of gender and using smartphones before bedtime on FoMO are mediated by self-esteem and smartphone addiction.
Results. Higher average levels of FoMO in girls can be explained by their lower self-esteem and higher smartphone addiction while controlling the effect of bedtime smartphone use.Girls using smartphones before going to sleep had the highest level of FoMO. The effect of bedtime smartphone use on FoMO is mediated by smartphone addiction, while gender has an indirect effect through both self-esteem and smartphone addiction with similar magnitude, rendering its direct effect statistically non-significant. Almost 30% of our study sample had a clinically relevant risk of smart-device addiction.
Discussion: Our results contribute to accounting for gender differences in FoMO by psychologically meaningful constructs (cf. self-esteem, smartphone addiction), which informs the identification of vulnerable individuals and facilitates the planning of interventions. Promoting conscious smartphone-use habits is especially relevant for adolescents. We draw on our results to provide practical recommendations for practicing professionals.