Dr. Tali Gazit
Social Network
Researcher Lecturer and researcher in the field of Internet Psychology, Department of Information Science, Bar-Ilan University. Among other things, her research deals with the enjoyment of missing out (JOMO) and the mental well-being of social network users
Dr. Tali Gazit, about two years ago you ran a study during an international emergency, which emphasized the nature of a new phenomenon from recent years, JOMO, an acronym for Joy of Missing Out. Before we talk about it, and how people are choosing to disengage today from the protests over legal reform, tell us a little about that research.
"In 2021, there was a collapse of the networks Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram. My collaborator Tal Eitan and I decided to ask people how they experienced that collapse. In the days following the collapse, we ran stress questionnaires at lightning speed to check for another phenomenon – FOMO, fear of missing out. The fear of missing out is, of course, related to social anxiety, and the higher its levels, the higher the stress during the downfall of the networks.
"Companies use the fear of missing out to get us to stay on and on the networks. It's worth a lot of money to them, and the sense of stress created by the fear of missing out hurts us in various areas of life – for example, driving, family time and what not. But it's important to note that fear of missing out is not necessarily a concept related to social networks and relevant to all areas of life. The networks only amplify it. When you know what 500 other people are doing at the same time, it's overwhelming. In the study, we also asked three open-ended questions: How did you experience the fall, what did you do during that time, and did you have any insights from it?"
I guess the answers, in some cases, were reminiscent of doping in the crease.
"In some cases. While many talked about stress and anxiety, there were others who described feelings of relief and joy – that is, people felt they could do other things beyond being on social media: playing sports, talking to their partners, sleeping, and just having fun. Some of them actually described the pleasure of missing out, JOMO, and as an insight from that study, this phenomenon seemed to benefit the psyche."
And then you decided to continue investigating this phenomenon. In a new study, you've found several types of pleasure from missing out.
"We found three types of pleasure from missing out: Active – a person chooses to disconnect. For example, putting your phone aside during dinner. Passive - that is, forced him to disconnect from the phone, for example in a movie or play. Another type of pleasure from missing out has to do with the person's coping with the fact that he is not connected. The latter two are more closely related to FOMO, as opposed to the first, active type. In general, it can be said that enjoying missing out reduces engagement on social networks, lowers social comparison to others, and of course increases mental well-being."
You've also found that women's levels of pleasure from missing out are higher. Why?
"Women are indeed better at their ability to enjoy missing out. We don't fully understand why, but women may be more effective in moving from task to task, especially in cases where they are more experienced in maintaining family and work, to generalize of course. This transition allows them to disconnect and connect faster. Another possible explanation: Women are known to be more involved in social networks. It is possible that the flooding of the networks also makes them appreciate the disconnection more and enjoy the moments of quiet.
"As for education, we found no differences in the ability to enjoy missing out. Conversely, as age increases, so does the ability to enjoy missing out. The fear of missing out decreases with age. If you will, growing up is just good for us."
Your research also examined various personality traits. You found that there is a relationship between personality and the ability to enjoy missing out.
"So we looked at the Big 5, the five big traits that were found to have a significant impact on a person's personality and the way they behave. The traits that were found to be related to JOMO, pleasure from missing out, and fear of missing out, only from the opposite direction – are openness, pleasantness and conscientiousness."
That is, when I have more of these qualities, I will experience more pleasure from missing out, and when I have less, I will experience more fear of missing out.
"That's right. This is the trend, although the data needs to be treated with caution because it still requires processing."
The secret: proactive breaks
Let's talk about the protest and the legal reform. Given that the pleasure of missing out is related to well-being, would you advise people to take their foot off the notification pedal?
"Of course, people are now more on the networks and on the streets, and that's important, no matter which side you belong to on the political map. On a personal level, I wouldn't recommend anyone to leave their phones now and not be involved in what's going on, but of course there are quite a few people who choose to disconnect during this period, consciously.
"Some people don't watch, and they don't read. I'm in groups of women who really ask us not to talk about the situation in the country, because they need quiet. And there is, of course, a pleasure in missing out. They don't want to, it causes them to be overwhelmed, and they're also not interested in fights within these groups.
Demonstration in Beersheba against the legal reform | Yaniv Zohar
"So you could say that this disengagement, as we found in the study, contributes to their mental well-being, and on the other hand, I think a balance is needed. That is, to find the right dose with initiated and planned breaks from the networks, also from current events, without completely disconnecting. It will definitely contribute to our mental well-being."
The planned, initiated breaks are related to the finding about active enjoyment of missing out. There is great power to the very fact that a person chooses to disconnect himself and that the disengagement is not dictated to him.
"That's right. If a person decides to disconnect for an hour a day to spend time with friends, children, play sports and even watch a series or read a book, his mental well-being will increase."
The famous story about Winston Churchill was that he made sure to sleep for lunch even during World War II, by choice, of course. No one considered him detached.
"That's right. So even in times of crisis and stress, the recommendation is to disconnect, even if only exceptively. This is critical to our mental well-being. Those who are not used to it will find it difficult to do it at first, but it is possible to practice and get used to it. And as mentioned, the matter of choice is important here. Studies have shown that people who were forced to disconnect didn't improve their mental well-being."
In previous studies, you examined another interesting group that is very relevant to the protest. You called it the "Spectators" group.
"On social media, there is a feeling that everyone is storming, writing, expressing a position. These things create a feeling of being overwhelmed. But studies have repeatedly found that in the end, the percentage of people who are actually in action, in engagement, within discussion groups is only 30-10 percent. It depends on which group it is, WhatsApp or Facebook, how big it is, but either way – the majority is silent, 90-70 percent, and these are the expectations."
They are present-absentees. And it can be said that almost in direct proportion to this, their presence at demonstrations and also on networks is quite passive.
"It is difficult to say about life itself, although there is reason to assume that it also happens in groups in reality, because it seems that fewer spectators will appear at demonstrations, because there is a connection between activity on social networks and activity outside, 'offline.' Viewers won't share photos and like, and they'll likely just watch the demonstrators in Kaplan from the sidelines. And since most of them are silent, most people seem to stay at home, in the air conditioner. Symbolic and practical.
"Although viewers read religiously what is happening on the networks, they also experience fear of missing out, but they simply do not express themselves. Indeed, they are present-absentees. You can't count them and it's very difficult to study them. The viewers are more introverted, less open and sit on the fence. They have opinions, feelings, they have something to say, but they prefer to be quiet."
What would make them come out, react?
"They need something that touches them personally, along with a familiar, enabling environment. If we happen to see viewers in Kaplan, it seems that something really touched them. We do see some increase in the numbers in Kaplan, and apparently these are people who have really begun to understand that it touches them personally, in their lives."
Do violent incidents at demonstrations also bother them?
"It will probably scare them, because they tend to be introverted. So hitting a protester won't necessarily affect them to come, because they don't like confrontations anyway. But personal stories will move them, ones that will affect them on an emotional, subjective level. A strong and significant injustice will also affect them, or exposure to what they perceive as untruth, as a lie.
"During a study I conducted about two years ago, when I spoke with these viewers in focus groups, they noted that if someone said things that were false, false, they would be influenced by it and act accordingly.
"I'll give you an example: A religious colleague of mine, who is very active on social media, saw another religious woman when suddenly someone passed by and told her to 'gas.' The same colleague of mine decided to write a post about it. Here's an example of something that can bounce someone who doesn't usually write too much online, but given a harrowing experience, she'll step out of her comfort zone and react."
Back to the bottom of the pyramid
Another angle that is indirectly relevant to the pleasure of missing out is related to the fact that some people are afraid that if they start updating, dive deep into the reform and fully understand its significance, they will simply lose their minds. In such cases, the pleasure of missing out serves as a kind of defense against a bleak encounter with reality.
"The voices you describe are completely there. A very large flood currently characterizes the vast majority of the population, even viewers, and there are people who actually say, 'We can't contain the coup as well. We can't take it now,' and they choose to disconnect, because they're worried about their mental health.
"I can say that at the beginning I also joined one of the protest groups, and I realized that it was doing me bad. I decided to silence her and stop looking, but I quickly realized that the solution was not to bury my head in the sand, because reality, what to do, continues to happen. On the other hand, I've heard of academics struggling for months to advance their research work, struggling to work, all because of the uncertainty hovering over us. But either way, complete disengagement is not proven to be a good thing and is not the solution."
In some ways, we have returned to the bottom of Maslow's pyramid.
"True, our physical security and belonging are impaired, and this affects our ability to advance things that are related, for example, to self-fulfillment or personal success. Even though I have a colleague who believes that our physical security is really not in danger, and that the struggle is for higher needs – equal rights, identity."
From another angle, that of legislators and politicians, can we try to speculate about what implementing the benefit of missing out might do to politicians and policymakers?
"That's a good question. I think politicians want us to stay connected. The pleasure of missing out may be good for the individual, but it is not good for the society that needs to be led, governed. A leader who wants to control people will do so better when they are in fear of missing out. In general, fear of people is essential for leaders who want to impose their will on leaders."
We can look at it from another angle: reform leaders might want lower levels of fear among the population. After all, this would have helped them advance the reform.
"But fear is fueled, and it's happening on both sides, by the way. One side fears the High Court and has fed the fear of the High Court for years, while the other side fears dictatorship. So the fear is there. On the other hand, it is precisely among citizens that there are checks and balances. The fear of missing out encourages engagement on networks, and perhaps outside of them; Enjoying missing out, meanwhile, encourages well-being. This is the counter-movement of the small citizen, of the private citizen."
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