Psychometric Properties of the Farsi Version of the Fear of Missing out Scale and the Phubbing Scale

Background: Fear of missing out on social media can be one of the motivations for individuals to participate in social media. Participating in social networking sites is also associated with social network addiction and phubbing and can have problematic consequences for social media users. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the reliability and validity of the fear of missing out scale (FoMOs) and the phubbing scale (TPS). Methods: The present study was conducted online by surveying Instagram social media users. A total of 431 individuals participated in this study and responded to the Farsi version of the FoMOs, TPS, and Social Network Addiction Test. For the assessment of the reliability of the test-retest, 40 participants answered the FoMOs and TPS separately in two 4-week periods. Correlation and factor analysis was performed using SPSS software (version 26) and Amos software (version 24) to analyze the data statistically. Results: The results showed the high internal consistency of the FoMOs (α = 0.85) and TPS (α = 0.83). Test-retest reliability was good for the FoMOs and TPS. The concurrent validity of the FoMOs and TPS was obtained as 0.51 and 0.70, respectively. The exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis results also showed two factors for the FoMOs (i.e., trait- fear of missing out (FoMO) and state-FoMO) and two factors for TPS (i.e., communication disturbances and phone obsession) in the Farsi version, which are consistent with the original version of the two scales. Conclusions: The Farsi versions of the FoMOs and TPS for use in Iran have good validity and reliability.