Prevalence and Predictors of Fear of Missing Out among University Students

Description

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20508072

Robert Castro Cudjoe, Humphrey Danso Bamfo, and Robertson David Mfodwo (Department of Education and Psychology, University of Cape Coast, Ghana)

Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) is characterized by the anxiety of being left out of social experiences and events, often exacerbated by the ongoing exposure to glorified portrayals of others’ lives on social media platforms (Przybylski et al., 2013). This study investigated the prevalence and predictors of fear of missing out among university students in Ghana. Convenience sampling was used in the cross-sectional descriptive survey to select 442 University of Cape Coast respondents. The study’s findings showed that among university students, FOMO was prevalent at moderate
(46.2%) and low levels (53.8%). More than half of the students had high self-esteem, and a significant number also had medium and low self-esteem. Most university students were found to have moderately high levels of loneliness. According to the study, among university students, loneliness and self-esteem were significant predictors of FOMO. The association between loneliness and FOMO was not significantly moderated by sex, but the relationship
between self-esteem and FOMO was. It was recommended that the National Communications Authority, Ghana Psychology Council and Educational Institutions collaborate in putting measures that regulate the social media usage as well as building self-esteem in students by creating programs focused on healthy social interactions.