Indeed, there is empirical evidence suggesting that poorer psychological needs satisfaction is associated with higher trait FOMO. FOMO can arise from deficits in satisfying these needs, either temporarily, which can give rise to state FOMO, or more chronic, which can give rise to high trait FOMO. The FOMO phenomenon can be framed within Self Determination Theory, where psychological health is determined by the satisfaction of three basic needs: competence (ability to act on one's environment), autonomy (feeling that one has choice) and relatedness (need to belong and be connected to others). Conceived as a trait, it appears that some people are generally more prone to such experiences, and that FOMO is similar to a personality trait with a continuum that ranges from low to high. The FOMO state is the occasional experience of anxiety or apprehension, for instance, when friends are out at a party that one is not attending. FOMO can be thought of as a state or a trait. In the present study, we attempt to fill this gap in the literature by determining the strength of the relationship using a large nationwide sample of Norwegian adolescents.įOMO includes both an affective component (fear, anxiety, apprehension, uneasiness) and a cognitive component that involves comparing one's own experiences to those of others, and to experiences one could have had. However, research concerning the potential relationship between FOMO and binge-drinking among adolescents is sparse. FOMO as a phenomenon has gained increased research interest in the last decade, especially due to its close association with social media use. Fear of missing out (FOMO), defined as ‘…a pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent’ could be one such risk factor. Up-to-date knowledge of risk factors for adolescent binge-drinking is important for developing effective prevention strategies. However, alcohol consumption, particularly the consumption of large amounts of alcohol on the same occasion, is associated with a range of detrimental consequences and health problems for young people. Norwegian adolescents with higher FOMO have greater risk of binge-drinking.Īdolescent drinking has declined in several Western countries in the past two decades. Effect modification analyses showed that the effect of FOMO on binge-drinking ≤ once per month was stronger for adolescents with low symptom levels of depression and weaker for adolescents at high levels of depression. Multinomial logistic regression showed that the crude effect, where greater FOMO was associated with greater risk of binge-drinking, was substantial (relative-risk ratio = 1.50, P < 0.001), but somewhat attenuated after including all potential confounders (relative-risk ratio = 1.28, P < 0.001). Overall, 21% reported binge-drinking ≤ once per month in the past 12 months, while 9% reported binge-drinking more than once per month. Self-report data were collected on binge-drinking, FOMO, sensation-seeking, symptoms of depression and self-regulation. Participants were a nation-wide sample of N = 2646 adolescents (mean age 16.2 years, 43% boys). MethodsĬross-sectional study of adolescents from 33 middle schools in Norway, stratified according to geographic location, urban and rural locations, and standard of living. sensation-seeking, symptoms of depression and self-regulation) and (iii) determine if it is uniform across all levels of these characteristics. The aim of the present study was: (i) to estimate the magnitude of this association (ii) to assess the impact of potential confounders (i.e. No previous studies have examined the cross-sectional association between fear of missing out (FOMO) and binge-drinking among adolescents.