{"id":1533,"date":"2026-04-13T13:26:34","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T09:56:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T13:26:34","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T09:56:34","slug":"what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/en\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/","title":{"rendered":"What is FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p lang=\"en\"><strong>FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\"><em>(The fear of missing out on others\u2019 experiences)<\/em><\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\"><strong>FOMO<\/strong> is a term in social psychology that refers to a person\u2019s <strong>persistent anxiety or concern that others are experiencing opportunities, events, or pleasures from which they are absent<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">This phenomenon has become very common in the era of social media.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 lang=\"en\">Scientific Definition<\/h3>\n<p lang=\"en\">In psychological research, FOMO is defined as:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p lang=\"en\">An emotional\u2013cognitive state characterized by a persistent concern that others might be having rewarding social experiences from which one is absent, leading the individual to continuously monitor others\u2019 activities.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p lang=\"en\">This concept was first systematically studied by <strong>Przybylski and colleagues (2013)<\/strong> in media psychology research.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 lang=\"en\">Psychological Mechanisms of FOMO<\/h3>\n<p lang=\"en\"><strong>1. Social Comparison<\/strong><\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">Humans naturally compare their lives with others.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">On social media, people often present <strong>the best moments of their lives<\/strong>, which can lead viewers to feel that:<\/p>\n<ul lang=\"en\">\n<li>Others are happier<\/li>\n<li>Others are more successful<\/li>\n<li>Others have more exciting lives<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p lang=\"en\"><strong>2. Need for Social Belonging<\/strong><\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">According to <strong>Self\u2011Determination Theory<\/strong>, humans have three basic psychological needs:<\/p>\n<ul lang=\"en\">\n<li><strong>Autonomy<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Competence<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Relatedness (social belonging)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p lang=\"en\">When a person feels excluded from social interactions, <strong>FOMO<\/strong> may be triggered.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p lang=\"en\"><strong>3. The Brain\u2019s Reward System<\/strong><\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">Notifications, likes, and messages activate the <strong>dopamine reward system<\/strong> in the brain.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">These small rewards encourage individuals to <strong>constantly check social media platforms<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 lang=\"en\">Signs and Symptoms<\/h3>\n<p lang=\"en\">People experiencing FOMO often:<\/p>\n<ul lang=\"en\">\n<li>Frequently check social media<\/li>\n<li>Worry about missing news or events<\/li>\n<li>Feel <strong>anxious when away from their phone<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Have difficulty focusing on present activities<\/li>\n<li>Believe others are living better lives<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 lang=\"en\">Psychological Consequences<\/h3>\n<p lang=\"en\">Research shows that FOMO is associated with:<\/p>\n<ul lang=\"en\">\n<li><strong>Increased anxiety<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Depression<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Lower <strong>life satisfaction<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Sleep disturbances<\/li>\n<li>Smartphone or internet dependency<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 lang=\"en\">More Vulnerable Groups<\/h3>\n<p lang=\"en\">FOMO is more commonly observed among:<\/p>\n<ul lang=\"en\">\n<li>Adolescents and young adults<\/li>\n<li>Individuals with <strong>low self\u2011esteem<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>People with a <strong>high need for social approval<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Heavy social media users<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 lang=\"en\">Strategies to Reduce FOMO<\/h3>\n<p lang=\"en\">Several effective psychological strategies include:<\/p>\n<ul lang=\"en\">\n<li><strong>Reducing time spent on social media<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Focusing on <strong>real-life, in\u2011person experiences<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Practicing <strong>mindfulness<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Recognizing that online content is often <strong>selective and exaggerated<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 lang=\"en\">Summary<\/h3>\n<p lang=\"en\"><strong>FOMO<\/strong> is a modern form of social anxiety that arises from the interaction of <strong>social comparison, the need for belonging, and the reward-driven design of social media platforms<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">Although it is a natural phenomenon, when intense it can negatively affect <strong>mental health, sleep, and concentration<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p lang=\"en\"><strong>\u201cSociety and Mental Health\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">Here, writings and materials related to psychology and psychiatry are shared.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\">ID:<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ble.ir\/jamehvasalamtravan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/ble.ir\/jamehvasalamtravan<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) (The fear of missing out on others\u2019 experiences) FOMO is a term in social psychology &#8230; <a class=\"cz_readmore\" href=\"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/en\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/\"><i class=\"fa fa-angle-left\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><span>\u0627\u062f\u0627\u0645\u0647 \u0645\u0637\u0644\u0628<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1534,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[92],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1533","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-psychological-writings"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What is FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)? 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- \u062f\u06a9\u062a\u0631 \u062d\u0645\u06cc\u062f \u06cc\u0648\u0633\u0641\u06cc Dr Hamid Yousefi","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What is FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)?","og_description":"FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) (The fear of missing out on others\u2019 experiences) FOMO is a term in social psychology ... \u0627\u062f\u0627\u0645\u0647 \u0645\u0637\u0644\u0628","og_url":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/","og_site_name":"\u062f\u06a9\u062a\u0631 \u062d\u0645\u06cc\u062f \u06cc\u0648\u0633\u0641\u06cc Dr Hamid Yousefi","article_published_time":"2026-04-13T09:56:34+00:00","author":"DrYousefi","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"DrYousefi","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/"},"author":{"name":"DrYousefi","@id":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/#\/schema\/person\/512da6ca9acbe5e05da6d89321cc2c40"},"headline":"What is FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)?","datePublished":"2026-04-13T09:56:34+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/"},"wordCount":404,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/compare-yourself-to-others-3-e1776266236691.jpg","articleSection":["Psychological writings"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/","url":"https:\/\/drhamidyousefi.com\/what-is-fomo-fear-of-missing-out\/","name":"What is FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)? 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