The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysis

IntroductionAddressing the impact of problematic mobile phone use on sleep quality has become a topic of concern for researchers, but the underlying mechanisms and effective intervention strategies remain under explored.MethodsThe aim of this study was to investigate the effects of cell phone depend...

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Main Authors: Fen Xie, Mengyu Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-07-01
Series:Frontiers in Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1632396/full
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author Fen Xie
Mengyu Li
author_facet Fen Xie
Mengyu Li
author_sort Fen Xie
collection DOAJ
description IntroductionAddressing the impact of problematic mobile phone use on sleep quality has become a topic of concern for researchers, but the underlying mechanisms and effective intervention strategies remain under explored.MethodsThe aim of this study was to investigate the effects of cell phone dependence on sleep quality, examining the role of FOMO (fear of missing out) as a mediator and mindfulness as a moderator. A total of 529 participants under 35 years were recruited to complete the survey. The research hypothesis was tested using Model 4 and Model 8 from the PROCESS macro in SPSS.ResultsFindings revealed that mobile phone dependence directly impairs sleep quality and indirectly exacerbates sleep disturbances through FOMO. Individual mindfulness traits mitigated the direct adverse effect of phone dependence on sleep quality, negatively moderated the relationship between phone dependence and FOMO.DiscussionThis study expanded the Media System Dependency Theory by introducing a dual-mechanism model of “psychological mediation + individual difference moderation”, and examined the moderating role of trait mindfulness within the Chinese cultural context. It is recommended that schools and enterprises incorporate mindfulness training into digital health curricula or daily training programs.
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spelling doaj-art-c6026a54bb9e434bb704edd97e7201b02025-08-20T03:28:55ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782025-07-011610.3389/fpsyg.2025.16323961632396The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysisFen Xie0Mengyu Li1School of Journalism and Communication, Guangxi Normal University, Guangxi, ChinaSchool of Communication, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, ChinaIntroductionAddressing the impact of problematic mobile phone use on sleep quality has become a topic of concern for researchers, but the underlying mechanisms and effective intervention strategies remain under explored.MethodsThe aim of this study was to investigate the effects of cell phone dependence on sleep quality, examining the role of FOMO (fear of missing out) as a mediator and mindfulness as a moderator. A total of 529 participants under 35 years were recruited to complete the survey. The research hypothesis was tested using Model 4 and Model 8 from the PROCESS macro in SPSS.ResultsFindings revealed that mobile phone dependence directly impairs sleep quality and indirectly exacerbates sleep disturbances through FOMO. Individual mindfulness traits mitigated the direct adverse effect of phone dependence on sleep quality, negatively moderated the relationship between phone dependence and FOMO.DiscussionThis study expanded the Media System Dependency Theory by introducing a dual-mechanism model of “psychological mediation + individual difference moderation”, and examined the moderating role of trait mindfulness within the Chinese cultural context. It is recommended that schools and enterprises incorporate mindfulness training into digital health curricula or daily training programs.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1632396/fullphone dependencesleep qualityFOMOmindfulnesshealth communication
spellingShingle Fen Xie
Mengyu Li
The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysis
Frontiers in Psychology
phone dependence
sleep quality
FOMO
mindfulness
health communication
title The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysis
title_full The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysis
title_fullStr The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysis
title_full_unstemmed The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysis
title_short The role of FOMO and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among Chinese youth: a mediating and moderating analysis
title_sort role of fomo and mindfulness in the relationship between mobile phone dependence and sleep quality among chinese youth a mediating and moderating analysis
topic phone dependence
sleep quality
FOMO
mindfulness
health communication
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1632396/full
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