Exploring Psychological Needs and the Mediating Effect of Fear of Missing out, Psychological Distress and Self-Compassion on Phubbing: A Cross-Sectional University Study

Phubbing, or prioritising smartphone use during face-to-face interactions, is an increasingly common behaviour with detrimental effects on mental well-being. This cross-sectional study aimed to explore the relationships between basic psychological needs, psychological distress, the fear of missing out (FoMO), self-compassion and phubbing. A total of 774 university students (<i>M</i>_<i>age</i> = 28.3, 74% women) completed an online questionnaire assessing these variables. After accounting for dysfunctional personality traits, age, gender, and years of smartphone ownership, partial correlations revealed that reduced psychological needs were significantly associated with increased FoMO (<i>r</i> = .27, <i>p</i> < .001), psychological distress (<i>r</i> = .42, <i>p</i> < .001), phubbing severity (<i>r</i> = .17, <i>p</i> = .01), and showed a significant negative relationship with self-compassion (<i>r</i> = - .46, <i>p</i> < .001). FoMO, but not self-compassion, was found to partially mediate the relationship between psychological needs and phubbing. The findings highlight the critical influence of FoMO on phubbing.