Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) and Digital Addiction in the Age of Social Networks: A Bibliometric Review of Psychological Phenomena

The rapid expansion of social networking sites (SNSs) has reshaped the psychological contours of everyday life, giving rise to two closely connected phenomena: fear of missing out (FoMO) and digital addiction. This paper offers a bibliometric and conceptual review of peer‑reviewed scholarship on FoMO and digital addiction, drawing from Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and PsycINFO. Employing a layered analytical framework that spans technological, psychological, and behavioural‑health dimensions of digital engagement, the review examines how SNS design features foster persuasive engagement patterns, how these patterns interact with individual and contextual vulnerabilities to trigger FoMO, and how sustained FoMO‑driven engagement can escalate into symptoms consistent with behavioural addiction. The synthesis integrates bibliometric evidence on disciplinary mapping, keyword evolution, and institutional collaboration, while highlighting persistent knowledge gaps and emerging interdisciplinary connections. Findings suggest that FoMO operates both as an antecedent and as a maintaining mechanism of problematic digital engagement, mediated by motivational deficits and reinforced through variable reward structures embedded in platform design. The paper concludes by outlining a research agenda that emphasises longitudinal causality, cross‑cultural generalizability, and the development of effective interventions.

fear of missing out, digital addiction, social networking sites, cyberpsychology, problematic smartphone use, bibliometric review, self-determination theory

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