Self-determination and FOMO
As a result of the self-regulatory component of the self-determination
theory, individuals are likely to monitor their behaviors due to
situational and chronic deficits in psychological need satisfactions
(Chatzisarantis & Hagger, 2007; Deci & Ryan, 2000; Przybylski, Rigby,
Ryan & Weinstein, 2009). Looking through the perspective of the
self-determination theory, the phenomenon FOMO can be considered as a
self-regulatory mechanism which is used to satisfy the psychological
needs.
There are three psychological needs explained by self-determination
theory: competence, autonomy and relatedness. These three needs can be
satisfied by social media engagement in the following ways: The social
media platforms can be used by individuals to compete with their peers,
ex. Sharing posts about individual accomplishments, autonomy is
expressed by sharing posts according to one’s will and interests, and
relatedness can be satisfied by sharing posts with other individuals and
viewing their content on social media platforms. Therefore, individuals
with high self-determination psychological needs would engage in social
media activities more frequently in order to satiate their needs.