Abstract

Fear of Missing out (FOMO) has become a pervasive psychological phenomenon with profound implications for consumer
behaviour in this hyper-connected digital era, where social media platforms and e-commerce sites constantly expose consumers
to peer activity, limited-period offers, and product trends. This study examines the relationship between FOMO and impulsive
buying behaviour, using a quantitative, cross-sectional research design, among young consumers exposed to FOMO-induced
marketing strategies such as "Only X items left in stock", "Sale ends in X hours", "Trend now", etc. The data were collected
from 320 young consumers using a convenience sampling technique. The results indicate a strong, positive correlation
between FOMO and impulsive buying behaviour, and regression analysis confirms that FOMO significantly predicts impulsive
buying behaviour, explaining 66.4% of the variance. These results highlight how dominant is FOMO as a psychological factor
influencing impulsive buying, and also contribute valuable insights to marketers to consider the ethical side of FOMO-based
strategies while encouraging FOMO as an important trigger for unplanned purchases.