Investigating 'Fear of Missing Out' (FOMO) as an extrinsic motive affecting sport event consumer's behavioral intention and FOMO-driven consumption's influence on intrinsic rewards, extrinsic rewards, and consumer satisfaction.

• Main Authors: Jeeyoon Kim, Younghan Lee, Mi-Lyang Kim
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2020-01-01
• Series: PLoS ONE
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0243744

This study posits that Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) can function as an extrinsic motive stimulating sport event consumption by inducing consumers to overcome leisure constraints. Also, FOMO-driven consumption is proposed to affect consumption experience for being grounded on extrinsic than intrinsic rewards. In Study 1, the moderation of FOMO between intrapersonal and structural constraints and sport media viewing intention are tested. In Study 2, the relations among FOMO-driven consumption, intrinsic rewards (i.e., enjoyment), extrinsic rewards (i.e., social adherence), and consumer satisfaction are assessed. Study 1 results support the notion that FOMO can boost sport media viewing intention through two mechanisms: by directly stimulating intention and by lifting the negative effect of constraints on intention. In Study 2, FOMO-driven consumption shows a stronger link to extrinsic than intrinsic rewards, extrinsic reward is marginally but negatively associated with intrinsic reward, and intrinsic reward is a stronger predictor of satisfaction. Overall, FOMO is identified as a meaningful extrinsic motive for sport event consumption though its effects on consumer satisfaction are arguable. Implications for FOMO-driven marketing are discussed.