PARASOCIAL INTERACTION AND FEAR OF MISSING OUT IN PARTICIPATORY MEDIA: IMPLICATIONS ON MENTAL HEALTH OF KERALA YOUTH

Abstract

The growing prevalence of social media has intensified parasocial relationships between audiences and media figures, creating new patterns of engagement and social comparison. This study examines the relationship between parasocial interaction, fear of missing out (FoMO), and mental health among youth. Using a quantitative design, responses from 200 youth aged 15-25 from various districts of Kerala, India were collected using tools such as socio demographic data, Celebrity persona interaction scale, Fear of missing out scale and General health questionnaire (GHQ 12), The data were analyzed to explore correlations between these variables. Results indicate that no significant difference in the parasocial interaction in adolescents and young adults, there is significant difference in fear of missing out in adolescents and young adults, there is no significant difference in the mental health of adolescents and young adults , there is no significant relationship between parasocial interaction and fear of missing out in Youth , there is no significant relationship between parasocial interaction and mental health issues in Youth and there is a significant relationship between fear of missing out and mental health in Youth .The findings contribute to understanding the psychosocial impact of mediated relationships, highlighting the need for digital literacy and mental health awareness programs tailored to youth audiences. This research extends media effects literature by situating parasocial interaction and FoMO within the evolving dynamics of digital well-being.