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Abstract

Previous studies have shown that the fear of missing out (FoMO) is positively associated with social media fatigue. However, few studies have explored the mediating and moderating mechanisms behind this association. In this study, we analyzed whether social overload mediates the association between FoMO and social media fatigue and whether this mediation process is moderated by interdependent self-construal. Using social support theory and the theory of compensatory Internet use, we analyzed valid questionnaire responses from 3,000 Chinese social media users to empirically validate the proposed model. The results showed that FoMO was positively related to social media fatigue and that social overload mediated the association between FoMO and social media fatigue. In addition, the mediation effect was stronger for social media users with high levels of interdependent self-construal. These findings could increase understanding of users’ psychological states when using social media and reduce the negative effects of FoMO on social media users.

Plain language summary

Keywords

FoMO social overload social media fatigue interdependent self-construal social support

Introduction

Social media is now a ubiquitous part of daily life. It can help people to fulfill their social needs and catch up with different aspects of other people’s lives anytime and anywhere. The Covid-19 pandemic has had a substantial effect on people’s work and personal life (Teng et al., 2022). Between 2020 and 2022, many countries implemented Covid-19 preventive or control measures and an increasing number of offline work and social activities have moved online (Pang, 2021). Previous studies have shown that during the Covid-19 pandemic, most people maintained relationships and obtained social support through social media. This has led to a substantial increase in the amount of time spent on social media (Tandon et al., 2021). However, the proliferation of social media interactions is associated with many negative mental states, such as the fear of missing out (FoMO) (Buglass et al., 2017; Coskun & Karayagız Muslu, 2019; Roberts & David, 2020; Rogers & Barber, 2019).

FoMO can be defined as the tendency to feel anxious about missing out on beneficial experiences that others may be experiencing (Przybylski et al., 2013; Rozgonjuk et al., 2020), and is a state of innate need deficiency that drives individuals to express specific behaviors (Tandon et al., 2021a). FoMO has been shown to predict social networking, and smartphone and Internet use disorders. Previous studies have shown a strong positive relationship between FoMO and problematic Internet or social media use (Alt & Boniel-Nissim, 2018; Blackwell et al., 2017; Elhai et al., 2016; Fioravanti et al., 2021). These issues are collectively referred to as the “dark side” of social media (Chai et al., 2019). Higher levels of FoMO may lead to negative emotions associated with social deficits (e.g., anxiety and jealousy) or outcomes that affect the well-being of the individual, such as social media fatigue (Tandon et al., 2021a).

Social media fatigue is a negative emotional response to the frequent use of social media (C.-C. Lee et al., 2014). During the Covid-19 pandemic, social media became an integral part of many people’s work and personal lives. However, frequent use of social media can lead to fatigue (Cao & Sun, 2018b). Many studies have explored the factors that contribute to social media fatigue (A. R. Lee et al., 2016; Ravindran et al., 2014; Zhang et al., 2016). Although research has confirmed an association between FoMO and social media fatigue (Dhir et al., 2018), our understanding of this potentially complex association is limited. Research has suggested that overload is an important mediator of the association between FoMO and social media fatigue. Overload has been categorized into different dimensions, including information overload, communication overload, and social overload (Fu et al., 2020; Lisitsa et al., 2020; Maier et al., 2015; Zhang et al., 2016). Of these dimensions, social overload is considered an important trigger of social media fatigue (Cao & Sun, 2018a; Lo, 2019; Maier et al., 2015). Several empirical studies have shown that people who experience FoMO tend to have close connections with others (Beyens et al., 2016) and are unable to control excessive social requests (Chai et al., 2019). That is, individuals with high levels of FoMO may satisfy the need for relevance through social media relationships because they desire ongoing social support. However, the frequent use of social media may generate social overload and eventually lead to fatigue (Maier et al., 2012).Therefore, the first study aim was to determine whether FoMO leads to social overload and whether social overload mediates social media fatigue induced by FoMO.

In addition, some studies have identified a natural link between FoMO and interdependent self-construal. People with an interdependent self-construal representation are motivated to care more about what others are doing and nurture their connections with others (Dogan, 2019). In addition, people with interdependent self-construal see those around them as part of themselves (Markus & Kitayama, 2010b). Dogan argues that people with interdependent self-construals have higher levels of FoMO, and our study extends his view. We believe that users with FoMO and interdependent self-construal need to use social media to manage a large number of social interactions to pursue interpersonal harmony and meet the needs of others. Thus, as their social networks grow, they may experience more social support but are more likely to experience social overload. The interdependent self-construal is supposed to act as a moderating factor that influences the relationship between FoMO and social overload. Therefore, the second study was to test that interdependent self-construal would positively moderate the association between FoMO and social overload.

The current article has the following three contributions. First, although the correlations between FoMO and social media fatigue and between social overload and social media fatigue have been studied, no study has yet explored the relationship between all three of them. Additionally, few scholars have discussed the specific ways in which FoMO affects social media fatigue. Our research attempted to demonstrate empirically that social overload is an important mediating variable between FoMO and social media fatigue. Second, China is a country where collectivist culture is prevalent and people tend to build their perceptions of self through interpersonal relationships as a reference. Therefore, the present study examined interdependent self-construal within the context of social media. The concept of self-construal was applied to the context of Internet use to ascertain the effects of social media and personal interaction on behavior. This is one of the few studies to discuss the relationship between FoMO and self-construction in the Chinese context, and thereby offer a different perspective on these issues. Third, in the context of the global Covid-19 pandemic, people are going out less, isolating at home more frequently, and using online technologies to connect with each other dramatically increasing. This sudden closure lifestyle may exacerbate people’s FoMO, and people experiencing FoMO are more likely to be immersed in the psychological need to be in constant contact with others, with negative consequences. With the normalization of the Covid-19, the study of changes in people’s mindset triggered by different lifestyle is even more important.

Although the Chinese government has recently changed its Covid-19 prevention strategy, 3 years of strict control have changed people’s habits. We observed that during the initial period of post-pandemic adjustment, widespread cross-contamination prompted a return to the isolation (or, more often, self-isolation) that existed at the beginning of the pandemic. Working, connecting, and communicating through social networks and social media became the norm. The present study findings could therefore contribute to current understanding of the relationship between FoMO and social media fatigue.

Concept and Background

Fear of Missing Out (FoMO)

Over the past decade or so, research on FoMO has proliferated. FoMO has been defined as “pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent” (Przybylski et al., 2013). This experience is particularly prevalent in the current age of social media. FoMO is a state of uncertainty that may be caused by a failure to satisfy psychological needs (Beyens et al., 2016; Conlin et al., 2016; Przybylski et al., 2013; Xie et al., 2018; Zhou, 2019). Because of the innate psychological need for connection, individuals with higher levels of FoMO are more likely to be constantly exposed to the ongoing activity of others within their social network through social media, and to be permanently online. This can lead to problematic social media use or malpractice (Rosen et al., 2018; Stead & Bibby, 2017). The stable positive association between FoMO and frequent use of social networking systems has been well documented (Chai et al., 2019). In addition to its association with social media engagement, FoMO can generate negative effects on mental health and wellbeing (Elhai, Yang, Fang, et al., 2020; Elhai, Yang, & Montag, 2020; Tandon et al., 2021a), such as anxiety, depression, burnout, and addiction.

Social Overload

Social overload refers to negative perceptions of social networking use, such as feeling overwhelmed by requests for social support or feeling overly supportive of others in one’s social network (Karr-Wisniewski & Lu, 2010). The concept of social overload was first identified by sociological researchers, who used it to describe the negative effects of population growth (McCarthy & Saegert, 1978). As the number of social relationships increase, people must invest time and energy to maintain these relationships. This can lead to physical and psychological distress for some people. Social networks generated by social media function like a virtual society, and so may lead to social overload. The causes of social overload and its effect on individual behavior have received much attention. For instance, some scholars have explored the antecedents and consequences of social overload. They have demonstrated that usage levels, number of friends, subjective social support, and relationship type are direct causes of social overload, and that social overload leads to user fatigue and dissatisfaction, which can reduce social network use (Maier et al., 2015). Drawing on previous research, we define social overload as an individual’s perceived evaluation of having to spend a lot of time and energy dealing with the needs of friends on social media, engaging in social interactions, and maintaining social relationships (Zhang et al., 2016).

Social Media Fatigue

Social media is now an integral part of many people’s lives, partly owing to the convenience and ubiquity of mobile devices. However, concerns about the darker side of social media use have increased (Ou et al., 2023). Although there is no consensus on the definition of social media fatigue, there is broad agreement that fatigue includes both psychological and behavioral dimensions (A. R. Lee et al., 2016; Ravindran et al., 2013). The psychological dimension encompasses negative emotions such as tiredness, boredom, and anxiety. The behavioral dimension encompasses intentions or specific behaviors related to reduced use of social media. Following previous research, we consider social media fatigue to be a negative psychological and behavioral effect of social media use owing to contextual and ontological factors.

In recent years, scholars have explored the various antecedents and consequences associated with social media fatigue. Some studies have suggested that social media fatigue is driven by personal, relational, and environmental factors (Zheng & Ling, 2021). Social media fatigue can also lead to poor performance (Ballerini et al., 2022; Hattingh et al., 2022), negative emotions, and mental health problems (Dhir et al., 2018). Social media fatigue is a multifaceted construct that can affect individuals in different ways, as previous research has shown. However, most studies have focused on the direct relationship between various constructs and social media fatigue; there are few studies on the more complex indirect relationships between them.

Interdependent Self-construal

Self-construction is a psychological concept that has been used to describe how the self-interacts with culture (Dogan, 2019; Markus & Kitayama, 1991). In their 1991 theory of self-construction, Markus and Kitayama proposed that the self could be construed as both independent and interdependent (Markus & Kitayama, 1991).Individuals with independent self-construal tend to view themselves as unique and place more emphasis on expressing their thoughts and feelings. In contrast, individuals with interdependent self-construal view themselves as part of a group or a network of interpersonal relationships, and are more inclined to listen to others (Lalwani & Shavitt, 2009; Markus & Kitayama, 1991). This expression of aspects of the self is often confused with the cultural dimension of individualism–collectivism (Lonner et al., 1980), However, the classification is based on national culture (S. L. Lee & Tam, 2020), whereas the classification of self-construal reflects the individual’s recognition or non-recognition of individuality and collectivity (Choi et al., 2011; Levine et al., 2003). In summary, individuals can be categorized as having independent or interdependent self-construals.

Although it is possible for individuals to have both an independent and interdependent self, interdependent self-construal seems more common in Eastern cultures. Or rather, in Eastern cultures such as China, Japan, and Korea, people are more likely to exhibit an interdependent self. Some research suggests that self-construal affects social media use (Dogan, 2019), people with an interdependent self-construal may be more likely to use social media and share personal information (Chen & Marcus, 2012; Kim et al., 2010). Thus, online participation seems to have a stronger reciprocal relationship with interdependent self-construal than with independent self-construal.

Theory and Hypotheses

Theory of Compensatory Internet Use (TCIU)

According to compensatory Internet use theory, individuals experiencing life problems or negative emotions cope by repeatedly engaging with online social media or websites (Kardefelt-Winther, 2014). For example, when people experience poor mental health or major setbacks in their work or personal lives, they may immerse themselves in social networks to escape reality or seek psychological satisfaction (Alt & Boniel-Nissim, 2018). Compensatory Internet use can lead to technology addiction, overuse, or problematic use behaviors and corresponding negative effects (Hattingh et al., 2022). Previous studies have demonstrated that individuals with high levels of FoMO need to mitigate their emotions through frequent online engagement, which can lead to negative usage behaviors and results (Tandon et al., 2022). We used the TCIU to explain how FoMO can have various consequences.

Social Support Theory

Social support is a multifaceted concept that has no adequate single or comprehensive definition (Hupcey, 1998). Social support is generally obtained through an individual’s social network and can be divided into three categories: social embeddedness, perceived social support, and enacted social support (Barrera, 1986; Thoits, 1995). Social embeddedness focuses on the size or density of an individual’s social network (Maier et al., 2015), perceived social support describes whether individuals can seek help from their social network, and enacted social support is defined as the specific behavioral actions (and their consequences) that an individual performs when providing social support (Barrera, 1986; Cobb & Jones, 1984; Tardy et al., 1985; Thoits, 1995).

Online social support often has positive effects, such as increasing life satisfaction (Oh et al., 2014), reducing depression, loneliness (Shaw & Gant, 2002), and the risk of distress and death (Brown et al., 2003; Liang et al., 2001), and relieving stress (Uchino, 2008). However, social networks can also cause stress and the social support they provide is not always positive (Rook, 1984) but can sometimes be negative (Hupcey, 1998; Rook, 1984). For instance, individuals may not accept the support provided by their social networks (Hupcey, 1998) or may provide more support than they receive (Rook & Dooley, 1985). Additionally, some individuals may find the assessment and interpretation of social support burdensome (Wittenberg-Lyles et al., 2014), and social support derived from negative or non-reciprocal social interactions may be ineffective (Krause, 1995; Lincoln, 2000; Rotenberg, 1994). Frequent interactions with friends may also involve negative outcomes such as disputes, embarrassment, and invasion of privacy (Rook, 1984). However, few empirical studies have confirmed the above-mentioned findings. Maier has mainly explored the negative effects of social overload caused by individuals providing too much social support through social media (Maier et al., 2015); however, many empirical studies have focused on the positive effects of social support. Few empirical studies have examined the negative effects of social support. With the continued impact of Covid-19, people may face more online social interactions than ever before, which may cause stress to online participants. Therefore, this issue needs to be urgently investigated.

FoMO and Social Media Fatigue

Tandon et al. found a strong positive correlation between FoMO and social media fatigue (Tandon et al., 2021a). A recent study showed that the relationship between FoMO and social media fatigue was mediated by online subjective well-being, compulsive media use, and information overload, and the results were inconsistent across social media platforms (Hattingh et al., 2022). However, few studies have examined the relationship between FoMO and social media fatigue in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. The threat, uncertainty, and stress generated by the pandemic has led to widespread anxiety and fear (Özmete & Pak, 2020). Proximal threats lead to mental health problems at a societal level. In the last 3 years, pandemic control measures (e.g., isolation, travel restrictions, and nucleic acid testing) in China have prompted a rise in negative emotions such as FoMO.

The continuation of Covid-19 prevention strategies has meant that people’s daily routines and lives are beginning to shift online, and offline activities are declining considerably. People increasingly look online to access information and to alleviate negative emotional states. In people with high levels of FoMO, the Covid-19 pandemic has led to an inability to participate in offline activities as much as they would like. The growing number of online activities may increase people’s expectations of social interaction (Dhir et al., 2018), which can exacerbate FoMO. The TCIU posits that people turn to online spaces to compensate for psychological needs. Individuals with high levels of FoMO may rely more on using online social media platforms to compensate for their negative emotions, because they are more sensitive to social bonds. However, excessive use of social media platforms is likely to be problematic and to increase feelings of exhaustion. To summarize, we suggest that during the Covid-19 pandemic, people’s experience of FoMO is enhanced and mitigated by heavy compensatory Internet use, resulting in social media fatigue. Thus, we assume the following:

Hypothesis 1: FoMO will be positively related to social media fatigue.

Social Overload as an Important Mediating Factor

The link between FoMO and overload has been established. However, there is not much literature that explores FoMO and social overload. It mainly focuses on FoMO and information overload (Bui et al., 2022; Fu et al., 2020; Liu et al., 2021; Zhang et al., 2016). As mentioned above, one effect of the Covid-19 pandemic has been to increase FoMO. According to the TCIU, FoMO is a negative emotion that increases anxiety, so individuals with higher levels of FoMO are more motivated to compensate and cope by using social media to satisfy their need for relevance. However, frequent online engagement may force people to expand their social interactions and connections, adding social demands to the huge amount of information that online engagement generates (Ye et al., 2022). Therefore, individuals with high levels of FoMO may have to accept and manage a large number of social networking demands. This may lead to negative psychological reactions, such as social overload, if the number of social demands exceeds their ability to cope. Thus, our second research hypothesis is as follows:

Hypothesis 2: FoMO will be positively related to social overload.

Previous studies have identified a positive relationship between social overload and social media fatigue (Maier et al., 2015; Zhang et al., 2016). We believe that this relationship must be reinterpreted in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. First, the pandemic was a major stressor (Özmete & Pak, 2020). The threatening nature of the disease and the uncertainty of isolation likely reduces people’s sense of self-control and generates negative psychological responses. Social support is an effective social resource for dealing with stressors (Shinn et al., 1984), alleviating negative emotions (Grills-Taquechel et al., 2011), and helping individuals to recover from mental health problems (Kaniasty, 2012). According to social support theory, social support can buffer and distract against stress (Lakey & Orehek, 2011) and improve the ability to cope through positive emotions. The provision of social support is an effective way of addressing national anxiety during pandemics (Ferber et al., 2022; Mo et al., 2022; Ortiz-Calvo et al., 2022). However, there is a flip side to social support. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the size of online social networks substantially increased (Zribi, 2022). Although this created opportunities to connect with large numbers of people, the need for social support during social interactions also substantially increased. According to Maier’s development of social support theory, the expansion of online social networks can lead to intense social contact. Social overload can occur if the number of social requests requiring responses and the amount of social support asked for is more than the individual can cope with (Maier et al., 2015). Second, social normative pressures may lead to social overload. In the context of the social stressors associated with the Covid-19 pandemic, the provision of social support to friends in social networks is a potential social norm. However, as the pandemic continued, too many requests for social support via social media may have led to exhaustion and burnout. In summary, we hypothesized the following:

Hypothesis 3: Social overload will be positively related to social media fatigue.

Previous research has shown a positive relationship between FoMO and social media fatigue. However, to our knowledge, few studies have examined the relationship between FoMO and social media fatigue. The mechanism underlying this relationship is unclear. The present study is the first to examine the interactions between FoMO, social overload, and social media fatigue. We suggest that the context of the Covid-19 pandemic in China has increased the experience of FoMO. To satisfy the need for relevance, individuals with high levels of FoMO create social overload through compensatory social media use. In doing so, they may face increased social demands and the need to provide more social support. These distractions can be annoying and cause stress, which is more likely to trigger social media fatigue. Therefore, we assumed the following:

Hypothesis 4: Social overload will mediate the relationship between FoMO and social media fatigue.

Moderated Mediation Model: Interdependent Self-construal as a Moderator

Dogan’s research demonstrates that individuals with interdependent self-construal care more about what others are doing. A possible explanation for this is that these individuals care more about their relationships with others and their surroundings. They are more motivated to strengthen and maintain their social networks and thus seek fulfillment in their interpersonal relationships (Kim et al., 2010). Dogan argues that interdependent self-construal is the basis of FoMO (Dogan, 2019). This is because the interpersonal relationships of individuals with interdependent self-construals form an important part of their self-construct (Dogan, 2019; Markus & Kitayama, 1991). Such individuals have a greater curiosity to understand what others are doing, and place more importance on connectedness (Dogan, 2019; Triandis & Gelfand, 2012). Interdependent self-construal predicts certain aspects of social media use (Kim et al., 2010; S. L. Lee et al., 2016).For example, individuals who have interdependent self-construal may experience more social motivation and more intense use of social media than individuals with independent self-construal (S. L. Lee et al., 2016). The former are more willing to stay connected to their social networks by sharing their thoughts (Chen & Marcus, 2012). As a result, these individuals are more likely to experience FoMO, generating compensatory social media use. In addition, because individuals with an interdependent self-construal are concerned about their interpersonal relationships, they may be more concerned about adhering to norms. This means that they may be less likely to refuse social requests from their social networks and more likely to provide social support to others. Thus, individuals with an interdependent self-construal are more likely to experience the stress of social overload. Based on the above arguments, the fifth hypothesis was as follows:

Hypothesis 5: Interdependent self-construal will moderate the relationship between FoMO and social overload.

For the construction of our model, please refer to Figure 1.

Figure 1.

Indirect effect of fear of missing out on social media fatigue through social overload. Interdependent self-construal moderated the relationship between fear of missing out and social overload.

Mediation Model With Moderation

Research Methods

Participants and Procedures

A total of 3,000 Chinese Internet users completed an online questionnaire. We used a quota sampling strategy based on the 47th Statistical Report on the Development of the Internet in China, published by the China Internet Network Information Centre. Of participants, 49% were women and 51% were men. The average age of the sample was 32.5 years (standard deviation = 11.45 years). Of participants 15% were aged <19 years, 28% were 20 to 29 years, 27% were 30 to 39 years, 20% were 40 to 49 years, and 10% were ≥50 years. The study data were provided by Ipsos (a professional market research organization), who completed the data collection in March 2021. We provided participants written informed consent. Participants were recruited on a completely voluntary basis, they were fully informed about the study process and reward for participation, and guaranteed complete anonymity and privacy.

Measures

Fear of Missing Out (FoMO)

The FoMO scale items were based on the items designed by Przybylski et al. (2013). We adapted and translated the original English scale to ensure it was suitable for online use by Chinese participants. Participants were asked to rate 10 statements about their use of social media on a scale ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree (e.g., “I worry that other people’s lives are more interesting than my own”). The item scores for each participant were summed and averaged. Cronbach’s α for this scale was .904.

Social Overload

The Social Overload Scale was used to measure social overload (Zhang et al., 2016). This 4-item scale is a Chinese translation of the original English scale. This translated scale was therefore appropriate for our sample of Chinese Internet users. We adapted the scale for this study. Participants indicated their level of agreement with statements about their friends’ relationship status; responses ranged from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree (e.g., “I devote too much care to my friends’ well-being on social media”). Item scores for each participant were summed and averaged. Cronbach’s α for this scale was .890.

Interdependent Self-construal

The 12-item Self-Construal Scale was used to measure interdependent self-construal (Singelis, 1994). Example items are “I have respect for the authority figures with whom I interact” and “I respect people who are modest about themselves”. Items are rated on a 7-point scale (1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree). Item scores for each participant were summed and averaged. Cronbach’s α for this scale was .914.

Social Media Fatigue

We used the Social Media Fatigue Scale to measure this concept (S. L. Lee et al., 2016). An example item is “When using social media, I often feel too fatigued to do anything else.” Items are rated on a 7-point scale (1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree). Item scores for each participant were summed and averaged. Cronbach’s α for this scale was .920.

Covariates

The variables of participant gender and age were controlled for, as previous studies indicate that these can substantially affect FoMO and social media fatigue (Dhir et al., 2019; Tandon et al., 2021b; Zhang et al., 2016).

Data Analysis and Results

The main study aim was to examine whether (a) FoMO would be positively related to social media fatigue, (b) whether social overload would mediate the association between FoMO and social media fatigue, and (c) whether interdependent self-construal would moderate the association between FoMO and social overload. These research questions were examined as follows.

Statistical Analyses

We used the PROCESS macro (Model 4) developed by Hayes (2012) to test the mediating effect of social overload. We then tested whether interdependent self-construal moderated the mediation effect. Means, standard deviations, and bivariate correlations for the dependent measures are shown in Tables 1 and 2. We generated 95% bias-corrected confidence intervals (CI) from 5,000 resamples of the data. If the CI do not include zero, the effects are significant.

Table 1.

Means, Standard Deviations, and Correlations of the Study Variables.

	M	SD	1	2	3	4	5	6
1. Gender	—	—	—
2. Age	32.66	11.42	.224***	—
3. FoMO	4.21	1.20	.077***	−.012	—
4. SO	4.08	1.42	.086***	.000	.673***	—
5. SMF	3.84	1.55	.108**	.010	.635***	.811***	—
6. ISC	5.01	0.97	.009	−.033	.331***	.211***	.106^***	—

Note. N = 3,000; Gender (male = 1 and female = 0). FoMO = fear of missing out; SO = social overload; SMF = social media fatigue; ISC = Interdependent self-construal.

p < .05. **p < .01. ***. p < .001.

Table 2.

Testing the Mediation Effect of Social Overload on Social Media Fatigue.

Predictors	SO (Model 1)				SMF (Model 2)
Predictors	B (SE)	p	95% CI		B (SE)	p	95% CI
Gender	.10 (.04)	.01	.02	.18	.11 (.03)	**	.04	.17
Age	.00 (.00)	.99	−.003	.003	.00(.00)	.65	−.002	.004
FoMO	.79 (.02)	***	.76	.82	.21 (.02)	***	.17	.24
SO					.77 (.02)	***	.74	.80
R ²	.45				.67

Note. N = 3,000; CI = confidence interval; SE = standard error; Unstandardized coefficients are reported; Model 1: F = 833.02. p < .001; Model 2: F = 1544.13.

p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.

Testing for Moderated Mediation

The results for Hypotheses 5 are shown in Table 3. The interaction between FoMO and interdependent self-construal significantly predicted social overload (B = 0.08, p < .001; see Model 3 of Table 3), supporting H5.

Table 3.

Testing the Moderated Mediation Effect of Interdependent Self-Construal on Social Media Fatigue.

Predictors	SO (Model 3)				SMF (Model 4)
Predictors	B (SE)	p	95% CI		B (SE)	p	95% CI
Gender	.09 (.04)	*	.02	.17	.11 (.03)	**	.04	.17
Age	.00 (.00)	.75	−.003	.004	.00 (.00)	.65	−.002	.004
FoMO	.34 (.08)	***	.18	.50	.21 (.02)	***	.17	.24
ISC	−.35 (.06)	***	−.47	−.23
FoMO × ISC	.08 (.01)	***	.06	.11
SO					.77 (.02)	***	.74	.80
R ²	.46				.67

Note. N = 3,000; CI = confidence interval; SE = standard error; Unstandardized coefficients are reported; Model 3: F = 512.28, p < .001; Model 4: F = 1544.13.

p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.

Preliminary Analyses

Table 1 shows descriptive statistics for all variables and the correlations between them. The internal consistency alphas were all above 0.80. The results showed that FoMO was positively correlated with social overload and social media fatigue, and that social overload was positively correlated with social media fatigue. Additionally, interdependent self-construal was positively correlated with FoMO and social overload.

Testing for Mediation Effect

Table 2 shows the results for Hypotheses 1, 2, 3, and 4. FoMO was positively associated with social media fatigue (B = 0.21, p < .001; see Model 2 of Table 2) and positively associated with social overload (B = 0.79, p < .001; see Model 1 of Table 2). Social overload was positively associated with social media fatigue (B = 0.77, p < .001; see Table 2 Model 2). Finally, it was found that FoMO had an indirect effect on social media fatigue (B = .60). Bootstrapping results confirmed the significance of the indirect effect, with a 95% confident interval of [0.5618, 0.6457]. Thus, H1, H2, H3, and H4 were supported.

As shown in Figure 2, for social media users with low interdependent self-construal, the slope representing the positive association between FoMO and social overload was relatively weak (B = 0.6804, standard error [SE] = 0.0257, t = 26.5098, p < .001). For social media users with high interdependent self-construal, the positive slope was relatively strong (B = .8430, SE = 0.0188, t = 44.9211, p < .001). Thus, H5 was supported.

Figure 2.

Interaction effect of FoMO and interdependent self-construal on social overload. High and low level of FoMO and Interdependent self-construal represent one standard deviation above and below mean, respectively.

Then, we tested the conditional indirect effect of FoMO on social media fatigue through social overload. FoMO had a positive indirect effect on social media fatigue for users high in interdependent self-construal (B = 0.65, SE = 0.03, 95% CI = [0.60, 0.70]) compared with those with low interdependent self-construal (B = 0.52, SE = 0.03, 95% CI = [0.47, 0.58]). The index of moderated mediation was 0.0646 (SE = 0.01, 95% CI = [0.04, 0.09]).

Discussion

Key Findings

The first hypothesis tested whether FoMO triggers social media fatigue. In accordance with previous research findings, FoMO is positively correlated with social media fatigue. As a result of unmet psychological needs, FoMO is a state of uncertainty. The use of social media may be more prevalent among individuals with FoMO (Tugtekin et al., 2020), especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. Some researchers have argued that users who experience FoMO are more embedded in social media (compared with those who do not experience FoMO). Users with FoMO spend more time on social media owing to the need to check it frequently, as they embed more social connections in social media, they face more social interactions (Maier et al., 2015; Manago et al., 2012). This can lead to psychological burden or overload of online connections and subsequent social media fatigue.

Social overload mediates the association between FoMO and social media fatigue, suggesting that people with FoMO experience social overload and develop social media fatigue during social media use. Those who need to continuously monitor the behavior of others are more likely to increase their use of social media (Przybylski et al., 2013).The extent and density of their social networks increases as a result of this process. As a result, they receive and process a greater amount of social support, leading to social media fatigue in the long run.

As we hypothesized, interdependent self-construal moderated the association between FoMO and social overload. Specifically, the relation between FoMO and social overload was more robust in individuals with high interdependent self-construal. This suggests that individuals with interdependent self-construal are eager to stay connected with the behavior of others owing to a greater focus on their social network (which they need to develop self-awareness) (Dogan, 2019; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Markus & Kitayama, 2010a). We extended previous findings by hypothesizing that individuals with interdependent self-construal should not be negatively affected by FoMO because their constant attention to others satisfies their desire to stay connected to their social network. However, we found the opposite effect. We suggest that even individuals with interdependent self-construal have a limited ability to deal with the social support requirements generated by their social networks. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the experience of FoMO increases the intensity with which they use social media (S. L. Lee & Tam, 2020). As a result, such individuals must receive and process an excessive amount of social support. This may offset the positive effects of social support, resulting in social overload and fatigue. Social media users who experience FoMO and have interdependent self-construal may experience mental burden and negative effects. This needs to be explored and confirmed in future studies.

Study Implications

First, although some studies have focused on the dark side of social media from the perspective of FoMO and technology overload (Cao & Sun, 2018a; Chai et al., 2019; Liu et al., 2021; Maier et al., 2015; Zhang et al., 2016), few studies have investigated the relationship between them in detail.

This study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between FOMO and social media fatigue. Based on our findings, TCIU and social support theory are important theoretical foundations for exploring FoMO and social media fatigue in this study. Furthermore, our investigation has generalizability in light of the ongoing impact of Covid-19 in China. It is likely that the application of these theories will yield more conclusive results and provide scholars with a deeper understanding of FoMO, social media fatigue, and other phenomena related to social media’s dark side.

Second, many studies have focused on the positive effects of social support (Lisitsa et al., 2020). Few studies have paid much attention to the possible negative effects of social support. We partly extended Maier’s research by suggesting that the psychological state of FoMO causes social media users to engage in frequent social interactions with their social networks and to develop a state of fatigue. Such fatigue is caused by overload, when users must manage more social support in their interactions than they are capable of. We investigated here a possible source of overload (Maier et al., 2015). In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, questionnaire data were collected. In addition to providing moral support to others over social media during this time, research indicates that social media users received a substantial amount of support from one another. This support helped them to cope with panic about the outbreak (Liu et al., 2021) and misinformation (Islam et al., 2020). Experiencing this type of social support in excess may result in fatigue from the use of social media (too many homogeneous interactions). There is a phenomenon in the study that aims to draw people’s attention, namely the impact of Covid-19 on people’s psychological state and their style of social interaction. In the event that people suddenly cease their original offline social activities, this may result in a drastic change in their psychological state. This may have an adverse impact on their original interpersonal relationships. Nevertheless, further research is needed to confirm these findings.

Third, we explored the negative effects of interdependent self-construal on FoMO, to address the literature gap regarding the effect of personality trait variables on FoMO (Tandon et al., 2021b). Individuals with FoMO generally experience positive psychological gains through social media use (Liu et al., 2021). Moreover, individuals with interdependent self-construal are more dependent on interactions and support from social networks (Mooradian, 2004), and should not experience social overload. However, we found the opposite effect. Our findings suggest that for individuals who rely on interdependent self-construction of interpersonal relationships for a long time, the social support generated by using social media when experiencing the FoMO psychological state may be a substantial burden or source of pressure. Additionally, such individuals may experience greater social overload and social media fatigue (interdependent self-construal positively moderated each relationship in the model).

Our study findings also have several practical implications. Social media users should self-assess their social media-related mental states (Liu et al., 2021) and learn to manage their social media use. While benefiting from online social support, they need to be aware that too much interaction and support can have negative effects caused by overload. Individuals could deliberately control the size of their social networks and avoid too much social activity. They could re-evaluate the time spent on social media, carefully consider the negative psychological states that may result, and thus maintain their mental health. Individuals could also distance themselves from social networks by posting messages on social media suggesting that they do not want to be disturbed for a while.

As social media providers, we propose enabling personalized and customized features for users with different psychological states and personality characteristics. Social media platforms could continue to develop as a result of such a user-empowering service. The user can, for example, select the messages he or she receives, limit the number of friends he or she has, and control what comments are accepted and responded to by others. Greater personalization of user status would help individuals to inform others when they do not wish to be bothered (e.g., by placing a “tired” emoji next to an avatar). Real-time reminders for users are needed that are based on monitoring of usage time online and how often they communicate with friends, so that users can avoid overload and fatigue.

Limitations and Future Research

Our study has several limitations. First, this was a cross-sectional study. Although our proposed model is based on relevant empirical and theoretical research, causal relationships between the variables cannot be inferred. Second, it would be better to measure FoMO by observing participants’ behavior (Dogan, 2019), rather than the measurement scale we used. Additional studies are needed that use behavioral methods to measure FoMO. Third, we ignored the possibility that interdependent and independent self-construal personality traits can occur in one person at the same time (Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Markus & Kitayama, 2010a). More research is needed to explore this possibility in more detail. Fourth, we did not conceptually qualify and precisely measure social media use, but assessed it using scenarios that measured other variables, which may have led to some ambiguity in the items. Finally, we relied on self-report data, which may have introduced bias and reduced the accuracy of the findings.

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research,authorship,and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research,authorship,and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [#71633001 and #72304018],and Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by CAST [#2023QNRC001].

ORCID iD

Qiyu Bai

Data Availability Statement

Data are available from the corresponding author on request.

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Dealing With Unnecessary: The Mediation Role of Social Overload on Fear of Missing Out and Social Media Fatigue

Abstract

Plain language summary

Keywords

Introduction

Concept and Background

Fear of Missing Out (FoMO)

Social Overload

Social Media Fatigue

Interdependent Self-construal

Theory and Hypotheses

Theory of Compensatory Internet Use (TCIU)

Social Support Theory

FoMO and Social Media Fatigue

Social Overload as an Important Mediating Factor

Moderated Mediation Model: Interdependent Self-construal as a Moderator

Mediation Model With Moderation

Research Methods

Participants and Procedures

Measures

Fear of Missing Out (FoMO)

Social Overload

Interdependent Self-construal

Social Media Fatigue

Covariates

Data Analysis and Results

Statistical Analyses

Testing for Moderated Mediation

Preliminary Analyses

Testing for Mediation Effect

Discussion

Key Findings

Study Implications

Limitations and Future Research

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

Funding

ORCID iD

Data Availability Statement

References