¿PREDICE EL MIEDO A SENTIRSE EXCLUIDO (FOMO) EL USO PROBLEMÁTICO DE INTERNET?: ANÁLISIS EN UNIVERSITARIOS/AS ESPAÑOLES/AS.

Current analysis about the use of digital devices advises about emerging problems among young users. The present research analyses the consumption of technologies by university students and the predictive effect of fear of missing out (FOMO) and life satisfaction on problematic Internet use. A total of 814 Spanish university students (71.4% health area; 28.6% social sciences), of both genders (61.2% female), aged 17-54 years (M = 22.81, SD = 7.038) participated. Two scales were used to assess problematic use (EUPI-A, FOMOs) and the SWLS for life satisfaction. The results showed a high daily consumption (M = 9.039, SD = 4.307) of social networking and messaging tools, significantly higher in women, and inversely and significantly correlated with age. The model with the highest explanatory power (R2 corrected=.35, p<.001) included FOMO and life satisfaction as explanatory variables for problematic Internet use. The exposure of young people to multiple Internet risks using digital devices highlights the urgent need for media education to identify these dysfunctional behaviors which impact on mental health and interpersonal skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]