From Fear of Missing Out to Belonging: How Social Media and Peer Pressure Shapes Conformity in Young Adults

Social media has become a pervasive force in shaping individual behaviours, yet little is known about the psychological factors driving conformity in this context. Drawing upon Social Influence Theory, which explains how individuals adjust their attitudes and behaviours under the influence of others, this study examines the predictive roles of the need to belong, fear of missing out, and peer pressure on social media usage, while exploring how this usage promotes conformity among young adults. The study addresses a critical research gap by investigating the mediating role of social media usage in these relationships. Data were collected through an online survey from a purposive sample of 471 young adults (58% females, 42% males; M = 19.91, SD = ±2.23), predominantly undergraduate and graduate students from diverse educational institutions in Pakistan. The sample size was determined based on recommendations for path analysis, ensuring sufficient power to detect meaningful relationships. Path analysis revealed that fear of missing out and peer pressure positively predicted social media usage, whereas the need to belong negatively predicted it. Social media usage had a direct effect on conformity and mediated the relationships between the fear of missing out and conformity, as well as the need to belong and conformity. However, its mediating role between peer pressure and conformity was non-significant. These findings shed light on the interplay of psychological factors driving social media behaviour, emphasizing the phenomenon of digital-age conformity and its implications for understanding online social dynamics.