Students’ Wellbeing, Fear of Missing out, and Social Media Engagement for Leisure in Higher Education Learning Environments

Abstract

This study was aimed at assessing the assumption that maladjustment to college could lead some toward excessive social media engagement for leisure during class. Moreover, the mediating role of a new phenomenon termed fear of missing out (FoMO) linking maladjustment to college life to social media engagement was examined for the first time. Data were gathered from 290 undergraduate students. Path analysis results showed that the maladjustment to college variable is linked to social media use only insofar as it is linked to FoMO. This study lends credence to previous work by showing the robust mediating role of FoMO in explaining social media use during lectures.