Understanding daily problematic social media use of young adults: the role of trait- and state-fear of missing out

Gao, Xuemei; Li, Jiayu; Bai, Xujia; Zhou, Yuhong; Jiang, Xintong

doi:10.1080/08870446.2025.2491588

Cited by 11Impact of Technology on AdolescentsDigital Media and PhilosophyCyberloafing and Workplace Behavior

Understanding daily problematic social media use of young adults: the role of trait- and state-fear of missing out

Gao, Xuemei, Li, Jiayu, Bai, Xujia, Zhou, Yuhong, Jiang, Xintong·2026·Psychology & Health

DOI 10.1080/08870446.2025.2491588

Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

Fear of missing out (FoMO) is strongly associated with problematic social media use (PSMU) in young adults; however, little is known about the different roles of trait-FoMO and state-FoMO in PSMU. This longitudinal study used 9-consecutive-day ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to investigate the momentary association between state-FoMO and PSMU and to determine whether such association is moderated by trait-FoMO. We used EMA to measure three daily social media use variables (i.e. craving, time spent on social media, and daily social media self-control failure) to determine daily PSMU. 129 female undergraduates (Mage = 20.48, SD = 1.47) completed a total of 4290 EMA surveys. All main variables were significantly and positively correlated with each other at baseline. Multilevel models revealed that the association of momentary state-FoMO with PSMU was significantly positive. Furthermore, trait-FoMO only moderated the positive association between daily state-FoMO and craving. Specifically, trait-FoMO enhanced the influence of daily state-FoMO on craving, and individuals with lower state-FoMO were more susceptible to the effects of trait-FoMO than individuals with higher state-FoMO. Different implications of trait-FoMO and state-FoMO are discussed particularly regarding their potential to increase the risk of young adult PSMU.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1080/08870446.2025.2491588

Cites

42 of 42 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Untitled work
(2013) · Cited by 44,563 · see citing works
Ecological momentary assessment
Shiffman, S., Stone, A. A., & Hufford, M. R. (2008) · Annual Review of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.clinpsy.3.022806.091415 · Cited by 6,454 · see citing works
Motivational, emotional, and behavioral correlates of fear of missing out
Przybylski, A. K., Murayama, K., DeHaan, C. R., & Gladwell, V. (2013) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2013.02.014 · Cited by 3,932 · see citing works
The Interaction of Person-Affect-Cognition-Execution (I-PACE) model for addictive behaviors: Update, generalization to addictive behaviors beyond internet-use disorders, and specification of the process character of addictive behaviors
Brand, M., Wegmann, E., Stark, R., Müller, A., Wölfling, K., Robbins, T. W., & Potenza, M. N. (2019) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.06.032 · Cited by 2,126 · cited 7× · see citing works
“That is, SFoMO is a proximal risk factor for repeated checking and ceaseless use of SM, which may lead to SMSCF and PSMU (Brand, 2022; Brand et al., 2019; Li et al., 2024; Li et al., 2023).”
Influential
Facebook Use Predicts Declines in Subjective Well-Being in Young Adults
Kross, E., Verduyn, P., Demiralp, E., Park, J., Lee, D. S., Lin, N., Shablack, H., Jonides, J., & Ybarra, O. (2013) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0069841 · Cited by 1,596 · see citing works
Untitled work
(2000) · Cited by 1,369 · see citing works
Extraversion, neuroticism, attachment style and fear of missing out as predictors of social media use and addiction
Blackwell, D., Leaman, C., Tramposch, R., Osborne, C., & Liss, M. (2017) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2017.04.039 · Cited by 897 · see citing works
The Role of Theory in Uses and Gratifications Studies
Blumler, J. G. (1979) · Communication Research · doi:10.1177/009365027900600102 · Cited by 847 · cited 4× · see citing works
“…SM corroborates prior research revealing the positive association between SFoMO and inability to control craving in problematic smartphone use (Li et al., 2022); this supports the UGT in that individuals attempted to use SM to relieve SFoMO anxiety and satisfy normal social needs (Blumler, 1979).”
Influential
Uses and Gratifications of Problematic Social Media Use Among University Students: a Simultaneous Examination of the Big Five of Personality Traits, Social Media Platforms, and Social Media Use Motives
Kircaburun, K., Alhabash, S., Tosuntaş, Ş. B., & Griffiths, M. D. (2020) · International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction · doi:10.1007/s11469-018-9940-6 · Cited by 594 · see citing works
Problematic Social Media Use in Adolescents and Young Adults: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.
Shannon, H., Bush, K., Villeneuve, P. J., Hellemans, K. G., & Guimond, S. (2022) · JMIR Mental Health · doi:10.2196/33450 · Cited by 593 · cited 4× · see citing works
“Problematic social media use (PSMU) is an excessive and maladaptive Internet use behavior (Shannon et al., 2022), which can be diagnosed as ‘other specified disorders due to addictive behaviors’ in the 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (Brand, 2022).”
Influential
Prevalence of social media addiction across 32 nations: Meta-analysis with subgroup analysis of classification schemes and cultural values
Cheng, C., Lau, Y.-C., Chan, L., & Luk, J. W. (2021) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.106845 · Cited by 571 · cited 1× · see citing works
“A meta-analysis involving 34,798 participants across 32 nations reported that the pooled prevalence estimate of PSMU is 25% (Cheng et al., 2021).”
Understanding and estimating the power to detect cross-level interaction effects in multilevel modeling.
Mathieu, J. E., Aguinis, H., Culpepper, S. A., & Chen, G. (2012) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0028380 · Cited by 546 · see citing works
Longitudinal Analysis
Hoffman, L. (2015) · Routledge eBooks · doi:10.4324/9781315744094 · Cited by 483 · see citing works
Do men become addicted to internet gaming and women to social media? A meta-analysis examining gender-related differences in specific internet addiction
Su, W., Han, X., Yu, H., Wu, Y., & Potenza, M. N. (2020) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2020.106480 · Cited by 476 · cited 2× · see citing works
“Because FoMO is more related to young age and female gender (Elhai et al., 2021), and women are more likely to exhibit PSMU (Su et al., 2020), referring to Yin et al. (2022), only female SM users were invited to participate.”
Fear of missing out (FOMO): overview, theoretical underpinnings, and literature review on relations with severity of negative affectivity and problematic technology use
Elhai, J. D., Yang, H., & Montag, C. (2020) · Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1590/1516-4446-2020-0870 · Cited by 460 · see citing works
Online-specific fear of missing out and internet-use expectancies contribute to symptoms of internet-communication disorder
Wegmann, E., Oberst, U., Stodt, B., & Brand, M. (2017) · Addictive Behaviors Reports · doi:10.1016/j.abrep.2017.04.001 · Cited by 458 · cited 8× · see citing works
“Direct relationships between higher SFoMO and greater frequency of SM usage and higher levels of PSMU were found in previous studies involving college students (Elhai et al., 2021; Li et al., 2023; Wegmann et al., 2017).”
Influential
Within-group agreement: On the use (and misuse) of r and r in leadership research and some best practice guidelines
Biemann, T., Cole, M. S., & Voelpel, S. C. (2011) · The Leadership Quarterly · doi:10.1016/j.leaqua.2011.11.006 · Cited by 364 · see citing works
Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) and social media’s impact on daily-life and productivity at work: Do WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat Use Disorders mediate that association?
Rozgonjuk, D., Sindermann, C., Elhai, J. D., & Montag, C. (2020) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2020.106487 · Cited by 315 · see citing works
Exploring the role of positive metacognitions in explaining the association between the fear of missing out and social media addiction
Casale, S., Rugai, L., & Fioravanti, G. (2018) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2018.05.020 · Cited by 219 · see citing works
Problematic social media use and social support received in real-life versus on social media: Associations with depression, anxiety and social isolation
Meshi, D., & Ellithorpe, M. E. (2021) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.106949 · Cited by 208 · see citing works
A network analysis approach to the relationship between fear of missing out (FoMO), smartphone addiction, and social networking site use among a sample of Chinese university students
Li, L., Niu, Z., Mei, S., & Griffiths, M. D. (2021) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2021.107086 · Cited by 194 · see citing works
Fear of missing out and problematic social media use as mediators between emotional support from social media and phubbing behavior
Fang, J., Wang, X., Wen, Z., & Zhou, J. (2020) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2020.106430 · Cited by 186 · see citing works
Can internet use become addictive?
Brand, M. (2022) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.abn4189 · Cited by 183 · see citing works
Effects of exposure to self-harm on social media: Evidence from a two-wave panel study among young adults
Arendt, F., Scherr, S., & Römer, D. (2019) · New Media & Society · doi:10.1177/1461444819850106 · Cited by 178 · see citing works
A brief measure of social media self-control failure
Du, J., van Koningsbruggen, G. M., & Kerkhof, P. (2018) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2018.02.002 · Cited by 169 · see citing works
Social media use and friendship closeness in adolescents’ daily lives: An experience sampling study.
Pouwels, J. L., Valkenburg, P. M., Beyens, I., van Driel, I. I., & Keijsers, L. (2021) · Developmental Psychology · doi:10.1037/dev0001148 · Cited by 168 · see citing works
Problematic smartphone use and specific problematic Internet uses among university students and associated predictive factors: a systematic review
Sánchez-Fernández, M., & Mas, M. D. L. M. B. (2022) · Education and Information Technologies · doi:10.1007/s10639-022-11437-2 · Cited by 123 · see citing works
The associations between attachment, self-esteem, fear of missing out, daily time expenditure, and problematic social media use: A path analysis model
Gori, A., Topino, E., & Griffiths, M. D. (2023) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2023.107633 · Cited by 97 · see citing works
Toward improved methods in social media research.
Griffioen, N., van Rooij, M. M. J. W., Lichtwarck‐Aschoff, A., & Granic, I. (2020) · Technology Mind and Behavior · doi:10.1037/tmb0000005 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
Problematic social networking sites use and attachment: A systematic review
Musetti, A., Manari, T., Billieux, J., Starčević, V., & Schimmenti, A. (2022) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2022.107199 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Passive social network site use and subjective well-being among Chinese university students: A moderated mediation model of envy and gender
Ding, Q., Zhang, Y.-X., Wei, H., Huang, F., & Zhou, Z. (2017) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2017.03.027 · Cited by 90 · see citing works
Fear of missing out predicts repeated measurements of greater negative affect using experience sampling methodology
Elhai, J. D., Rozgonjuk, D., Liu, T., & Yang, H. (2020) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2019.11.026 · Cited by 74 · see citing works
Conceptualizing Self-control on Problematic Social Media Use
Zahrai, K., Veer, E., Ballantine, P. W., & de Vries, H. P. (2021) · Australasian Marketing Journal (AMJ) · doi:10.1177/1839334921998866 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
Using ecological momentary assessment to assess the temporal relationship between sleep quality and cravings in individuals recovering from substance use disorders
Freeman, L., & Gottfredson, N. C. (2017) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2017.11.001 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
Ecological momentary assessment in addiction
Lukasiewicz, M., Fareng, M., Benyamina, A., Blecha, L., Reynaud, M., & Falissard, B. (2007) · Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics · doi:10.1586/14737175.7.8.939 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
Profiles of fear of missing out and their social media use among young adults: A six-month longitudinal study
Li, J., Zhou, Y., Liu, Y., Yu, Z., & Gao, X. (2023) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2023.107899 · Cited by 35 · see citing works
Self-citation
Predicting social media use intensity in late adolescence: The role of attachment to friends and fear of missing out
Kostić, J. O., Pedović, I., & Stošić, M. (2022) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103667 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Social media, self-harm, and suicide
Scherr, S. (2022) · Current Opinion in Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101311 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
A network analysis approach to core symptoms and symptom relationships of problematic social media use among young adults
Li, J., Zhou, Y., Lv, X., Leng, X., Jiang, X., & Gao, X. (2023) · Information Communication & Society · doi:10.1080/1369118x.2023.2245870 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Self-citation
Effects of Stressors of COVID-19 on Chinese College Students' Problematic Social Media Use: A Mediated Moderation Model
Zhao, J., Ye, B., Yu, L., & Xia, F. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2022.917465 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Browsing makes you feel less bad: An ecological momentary assessment of passive Qzone use and young women's negative emotions
Yin, X.-Q., Xin-xue, Z., Scherr, S., & Wang, J. (2021) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114373 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Other-Contingent Extraversion and Satisfaction
Huang, J. L. W., & Wu, D. (2020) · Journal of Individual Differences · doi:10.1027/1614-0001/a000339 · Cited by 6 · see citing works

Flagged first, then by citations

1 of the 43 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Sorted by citations

A 3-item short version of the fear of missing out (FoMO) scale for trait and time-intensive designs: Measurement invariance and psychometric properties
Hisham, E. M., Hartanto, A., & Majeed, N. M. (2025) · Telematics and Informatics Reports · doi:10.1016/j.teler.2025.100259 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Insomnia as a Behavioral Pathway from Fear of Missing Out to Depression in Emerging Adults
Chin, B. N., & Xie, Y. (2025) · Brain Sciences · doi:10.3390/brainsci15090917 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Fitness influencers in Chinese social media: Role models for youth or unattainable ideals?
Xianan, L. (2025) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2025.105743 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Digital hoarding behavior of short video platform users: driving mechanisms and complex path analysis based on the C-A-C framework
Qiu, J., Feng, C., & Xu, Z. (2026) · Internet Research · doi:10.1108/intr-05-2025-0670 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Examining intra-individual variability of ecological momentary assessment with multilevel modeling: A systematic review and recommendations for research and practice
Luna, C. M., Dai, S., Pagán, C. R., Liu, C., & Schmitter‐Edgecombe, M. (2025) · The Clinical Neuropsychologist · doi:10.1080/13854046.2025.2592660 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
The Scrolling Paradox: Analyzing Instagram Addiction Patterns in The Digital Age
Balcıoğlu, Y. S., Bayraktar, Ü., & Güven, E. (2025) · İmgelem · doi:10.53791/imgelem.1685011 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Fear of Missing Out and Problematic Social Media Use: A Literature Review
Tantiani, F. F., & Tri Atika Melya., B. (2025) · KnE Social Sciences · doi:10.18502/kss.v10i25.19916 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
From self-construal to trait- and state-fear of missing out: the roles of need to belong and active social media use
Zuo, L., Mao, J., Yang, L., Wang, H., & Xie, Z. (2026) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1743687
Temptation as a key driver between affective states and usage outcomes of problematic usage of the Internet: A 14-day ambulatory assessment study
Oelker, A., Knorr, A., Brand, M., & Müller, S. M. (2026) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0352776
From scrolling to buying: cognitive and affective effects of user-generated content on purchase intention in culinary TikTok content
Sanawiri, B., Hanum, F. N., Irawan, A., Agusti, R. R., & Iqbal, M. (2026) · Cogent Business & Management · doi:10.1080/23311975.2026.2748096
Selective associations of fear of missing out with social incentive anticipation and feedback processing: Event-related potential evidence
Li, J., Zhou, Y., Bai, X., Gao, X., & Zhang, Z. (2026) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2026.114156
Self-citation

Profiles of fear of missing out and their social media use among young adults: A six-month longitudinal study
Li, J., Zhou, Y., Liu, Y., Yu, Z., & Gao, X. (2023) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2023.107899 · Cited by 35 · see citing works
Self-citation
The role of trait and state fear of missing out on problematic social networking site use and problematic smartphone use severity
Hussain, Z., Elhai, J. D., Montag, C., Wegmann, E., & Rozgonjuk, D. (2023) · Emerging Trends in Drugs Addictions and Health · doi:10.1016/j.etdah.2023.100140 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Relationship between trait and state of Fear of Missing Out and experiencing symptoms of Social Media Use Disorder: An experience sampling study
Sawicki, A., Balcerowska, J., & Jankowski, K. (2024) · Open Science Framework · doi:10.17605/osf.io/m6axj
“Caught in the Loop": How Fear of Missing Out and Neuroticism Drive Problematic Social Media Use in Young Adults
Septania, S., Helmi, A. F., & Thontowi, H. B. (2025) · Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Social Science (ICSS) · doi:10.59188/icss.v4i1.238 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
From self-construal to trait- and state-fear of missing out: the roles of need to belong and active social media use
Zuo, L., Mao, J., Yang, L., Wang, H., & Xie, Z. (2026) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1743687

Authors: Gao, X., Li, J., Bai, X., Zhou, Y., & Jiang, X.
Affiliations: Southwest Jiaotong University (CN)
Southwest University (CN)
Northeast Normal University (CN)
Corresponding author: Gao, Xuemei
ORCID: Gao, Xuemei
Li, Jiayu
Zhou, Yuhong
Jiang, Xintong
Venue: Psychology & Health
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Published: 2025-04-12
Volume: 41
Issue: 6
Pages: 864-876
ISSN: 0887-0446 (ISSN-L)
1476-8321
DOI: 10.1080/08870446.2025.2491588
OpenAlex: W4409380496
Cited by: 10
References: 43
Citations by year: 2026: 4 · 2025: 6
FWCI: 17.42
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Locations: Psychology and Health (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders: National Social Science Foundation of China (19BSH112)
Chongqing Research Program of Basic Research and Frontier Technology
Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (226)
Topics: Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Science Applications › Digital Media and Philosophy
Social Sciences › Demography › Cyberloafing and Workplace Behavior
Keywords: fear of missing out, social media addiction, young adults, moderation
MeSH terms: Self-Control, Ecological Momentary Assessment, Adolescent, Adult, Fear, Female, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Students, Young Adult, Social Media, Craving

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review

Understanding daily problematic social media use of young adults: the role of trait- and state-fear of missing out

Abstract

Integrity signals

Claims the paper makes

Self-check

Cites

Cited by

Related

Record

About these checks