The Fear of Missing out and Smartphone Addiction Mediate Interpersonal Sensitivity, Family Environment on Academic Procrastination

Objective: Smartphone addiction among adolescents is associated with academic and psychological consequences, and personality and family factors can act as key contributors to smartphone addiction. Methods: This study examined whether fear of missing out (FoMO) and smartphone addiction mediate the associations of interpersonal sensitivity and family environment with academic procrastination. A cross-sectional, descriptive-correlational design was used. The statistical population comprised female students in grades 10-12 studying in Mashhad City, Iran. A two-stage cluster method was used for sampling. A total of 384 female students completed a short-form family environment scale, interpersonal sensitivity measure (IPSM), academic procrastination test, mobile phone addiction questionnaire, and FoMO scale. Results: The findings revealed significant positive associations among academic procrastination, FoMO, smartphone addiction, and interpersonal sensitivity. Also, family environment had a significant negative correlation with academic procrastination, FoMO, and smartphone addiction. The results of structural equation analysis in the fitted model showed that smartphone addiction and FoMO significantly mediated the relationships between interpersonal sensitivity and family environment with academic procrastination. Conclusion: Weak family connections and interpersonal sensitivity are risk factors for smartphone addiction and FoMO, which ultimately lead to academic procrastination in adolescents.