On fear of missing out, social networks use disorder tendencies and meaning in life

BMC Psychology

Research

Christian Montag¹  Marko Müller¹  Jon D. Elhai²  Halley M. Pontes³ 

[1] Department of Molecular Psychology, Institute of Psychology and Education, Ulm University, Helmholtzstr. 8/1, 89081, Ulm, Germany;Department of Psychology and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA;School of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK;

关键词: Social networks use disorder;    Problematic social media use;    Social media addiction;    Well-being;    Meaning in life;    Fear of missing out;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s40359-023-01342-9

 received in 2023-05-31, accepted in 2023-09-21,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

Much research has been conducted on the association between social networks use disorder tendencies (SNUD; i.e. problematic social media use) and well-being. In more detail, a meta-analysis and further research suggest an inverse association between higher SNUD tendencies and lower well-being. In existing studies on social media use and well-being, this association has often been investigated by asking participants about their life satisfaction and/or emotional well-being. A path that has only recently been used to shed further light on SNUD tendencies is the assessment of meaning in life. Against this background, the present study aimed to investigate both the search for and presence of meaning in life in the context of SNUD tendencies in 955 participants. To the best of our knowledge and beyond what has been mentioned, this study is the first to investigate the links between meaning in life variables and state/trait fear of missing out (FoMO), with FoMO being a critical variable known to be linked to the overuse of digital technologies. In a structural equation model, we observed that associations between FoMO and meaning in life variables was mediated by SNUD tendencies. Although the present study is of cross-cultural nature and cannot establish causality, it might be the case that proneness to FoMO might trigger SNUD tendencies and as a consequence, results in more search for meaning in life, while hindering presence of meaning in life.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2023

【 图 表 】

Fig. 4