Exploring the Mediating Role of Fear of Missing Out between Social Media Use and Inferiority Complex in Young Adults

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19625055

Riya Gupta and Neerja Pandey (Amity Institute of Behavioural and Allied Sciences (AIBAS), Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh)

The addition of social media to most aspects of life has become unavoidable, leading to increased concerns regarding psychological well-being. Previous research linked social media use to negative self-perception, but the mechanism driving the use has not been studied much. The current study aims to explore the relationship between Social media Use, Fear of Missing Out and inferiority complex, especially to investigate the mediating role of FoMO. This study involves a quantitative, cross-sectional approach, conducted using convenience sampling from 212 adults aged between 18-30 years (M= 22.8). The Social Media Use Scale (SMUS) developed by Tuck and Thompson (2024), Fear of Missing Out Scale (FoMOS) developed by Przybylski et al. (2013), and COMPIN-10 by Čekrlija et al. (2025) for assessing Inferiority Complex were employed for data collection from the respondents. Statistical tests employed for the study include Pearson correlation, independent sample t-test, ANOVA, and mediation analysis. The correlational analysis indicated that the relationship between social media use, FoMO, and Inferiority Complex was positive and significant. Mediation analysis indicated that FoMO partially mediated the relationship between comparison-based social media use and Inferiority Complex (ab = 0.30). Additionally, it was found that passive users had higher inferiority scores than balanced users (p < .05). There were no significant gender differences found, also it was observed that social media usage and comparison behaviours decreased with age. These findings suggest that social media use does not directly lead to inferiority, but rather FoMO and comparison-based behaviours that bring about feelings of inferiority. This research also points to the detrimental effects of passive and comparative usage of social media, thus supporting the necessity of designing strategies to reduce the impact of FoMO, as well as the usage of social media on the well-being of individuals.