“Fear of missing out” linked to alcohol harm in
students
University students who have a greater
“fear of missing out” (FoMO) are much more likely to
experience negative consequences from drinking alcohol, new
University of Otago psychology research suggests.
FoMO refers to the uneasy and often all-consuming sense
that friends or others are having rewarding experiences from
which one is absent. It is characterised by a desire to
remain socially connected and may manifest itself as a form
of social anxiety.
The Otago Department of
Psychology researchers have now published what is believed
to be the first research examining FoMO, alcohol use, and
alcohol-related consequences in university students.
Their study appears in the journal Annals of
Neuroscience and Psychology.
In two separate
studies, a total of 432 students took a psychometric test to
measure their FoMO level and completed an alcohol
consequences questionnaire. In the first study, the students
were then asked about their alcohol use over the past 30
days, and in the second study they reported their alcohol
use on a daily basis over a fortnight.
The 10-item
FoMO scale asked participants how strongly they agreed with
statements such as “when I miss out on a planned
get-together it bothers me” and “I fear others have more
rewarding experiences than me”.
Department of
Psychology PhD candidate and study co-author Jayde Flett
says that those who scored highly on the FoMO scale reported
twice as many instances of alcohol-related negative
consequences over the past three months than those low in
the trait.
“In both studies, participants higher
in FoMO were more likely to have reported ‘feeling badly
about myself’, having ‘said embarrassing things’, or
‘done impulsive things that [they] later regretted’ when
drinking. Additionally, they were more likely to have had
‘less energy’, ‘had a hangover’, or have ‘not
remembered stretches of the night,’ Ms Flett says.
In the second study, which had a broader sample than the
first, those higher in FoMO were more likely to have
“taken foolish risks when drinking”, “became rude or
obnoxious”, and “drank alcohol on nights that they had
not planned”.
Across both studies, higher FoMO
scores were associated with experiencing more negative
alcohol-related consequences but not overall higher alcohol
use.
Ms Flett and her co-authors concluded that
“to reduce alcohol-related harm within the student
population, it may be important to address social factors
such as FoMO that may drive people towards riskier behaviour
surrounding alcohol use”.
The study was supported
through the Health Research Council of New
Zealand.
ENDS