TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Joy of missing out: Users quit to stay happy

To quit or not to quit? This was the question that haunted Rany Hartono, 25, as she faced a personal crisis with social media in 2017

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Wed, March 20, 2019

Share This Article

Change Size

Joy of missing out: Users quit to stay happy

To quit or not to quit? This was the question that haunted Rany Hartono, 25, as she faced a personal crisis with social media in 2017.

As an avid social media user who was finishing her undergraduate thesis, Rany was struck with growing anxiety as her friend’s graduation pictures flooded her Instagram feed.

In the following months, Rany ebbed back and forth in her attempts to withdraw from social media, which prompted her to cut down on her social engagements for as long as three months.

“[I kept coming back] because I needed to know what events were happening around me,” Rany said. “I also felt the need to share my thoughts and what I was experiencing.”

Rany’s quandary is likely typical of many millennials who suffer from a fear of missing out (FOMO).

FOMO is generally defined as a pervasive apprehension that one is not a part of a widely acknowledged trend or presumed rewarding experience.

Psychologist Saskhya Aulia Prima said that those who feared missing out tended to feel left out from the community, typically as a result of leaving social media.

Indonesia is home to one of the largest populations of social media users in the world. As of January, 130 million Indonesians were registered on Facebook, meaning the country places fourth for the highest number of users on the platform after India, the United States and Brazil, according to Statista. Indonesia also ranks fourth in the world for the most Instagram users with 69 million.

“[FOMO occurs] because people have social standards on what a trendy and socially acceptable person looks like or where the popular restaurants are,” Saskhya said. “So they have something to discuss with their peers.”

While the anxiety was generally harmless, the fear could become a problem if a person went out of their way to be in the loop, as it could start to disturb their daily sleep or work patterns, she said.

Several documentaries have pointed to the promotional strategy for the failed 2017 Fyre Festival as an example of FOMO exploitation. The event attracted thousands of people by using 250 social media influencers to promote an extravagant vacation and music festival on a private tropical island.

With some people willing to pay up to US$12,000 for the festival’s luxurious packages, the attendees were instead welcomed with disaster relief tents and pre-packaged sandwiches with no signs of a music festival because of the event’s disorganization, leading to lawsuits against the organizers.

To curb this trend, many social media users have begun endorsing the Joy of Missing Out (JOMO) movement by encouraging people to spend time away from social media and enjoy off-screen activities. At least 416 tweets on Twitter have been posted with the hashtag #JOMO.

London-based market research company Euromonitor International has listed JOMO as one of the 10 emerging global trends, with companies like Google and Apple embracing audiobooks and podcasts as a way for listeners to detach themselves from social media.

The internet and tech giants’ efforts correspond with Euromonitor’s 2017 findings that regardless of their origins, millennials were looking to declutter their online social network engagements as their internet usage has added to their stress levels.

However, University of Indonesia (UI) sociologist Roby Muhammad is not on board with this strategy. He suggested that managing “toxic” content was a better remedy than leaving one’s online social network.

For example, if certain groups on a chat platform stirred negative emotions, Roby suggested users just delete the messages from their phones. “The emphasis is not on social media but on ways to remove the negative vibes that surround a person,” Roby said.

A 2018 study by San Diego University backs up Roby’s advice. The study revealed that while social media overuse led to unhappiness, quitting social media was not a solution.

In fact, the study indicated that those who spend around two hours a day on their phones are the happiest.

Furthermore, not all types of FOMO were detrimental, psychologist Saskhya argued. Users can also self-manage the accounts they follow and curate content that is “positive and purposeful”, she said.

In the meantime, Rany has set boundaries for herself by aiming to take one month off social media every six months. After the break, she intends to limit her social media usage to just one hour each day.

“I know it’s good for my mental health,” Rany said. (mai)

{

Your Opinion Matters

Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.