The Mediating Role of Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) in the Relationship Between Social Media Engagement and Sleep Disturbance in Teenagers

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) in the relationship between social media engagement and sleep disturbance among adolescents in Bangladesh. Methods and Materials: A descriptive correlational research design was employed, involving 450 high school students aged 13 to 18 years, selected based on the Morgan and Krejcie sampling table. Standardized questionnaires were used to assess social media engagement, FoMO, and sleep disturbance. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Fear of Missing Out Scale (FoMOS), and the Social Media Engagement Questionnaire (SMEQ) served as the primary instruments. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficients in SPSS-27 and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) in AMOS-21 to test direct and indirect relationships among the variables and to evaluate the model's goodness-of-fit. Findings: Results revealed that social media engagement was significantly and positively associated with FoMO (r = .52, p < .001) and sleep disturbance (r = .43, p < .001). Additionally, FoMO was strongly related to sleep disturbance (r = .49, p < .001). The SEM analysis confirmed that FoMO partially mediated the relationship between social media engagement and sleep disturbance. The structural model demonstrated good fit indices (χ²/df = 2.17, CFI = 0.97, RMSEA = 0.051). Direct, indirect, and total effects were all statistically significant, highlighting the psychological mechanism through which excessive social media use impacts adolescent sleep quality. Conclusion: These findings underscore the need for interventions targeting digital habits and FoMO to promote healthier sleep among youth.