Approximately 67% of teens actively use TikTok, one of the top social media platforms. Also, approximately 40% of teens observe alcohol on social media in some capacity (Vogels, Gelles-Watnick, Maccarat, 2022). FOMO (fear of missing out) is a form of anxiety one experiences by not going to an event or feeling left out. People can have many different triggers, one of which is social media posts. It has been shown that people who are exposed to more drinking on social media have a higher likelihood of consuming alcohol themselves. BeREAL is a new, fast growing social media platform established in 2020 and began to rise in popularity in early 2022. The creators call this new social media platform a “casual instagram.” Once every day at a random time, the app will send you a notification to post a picture taken from the front and backside of your camera and the picture will be posted for 24 hours only. There are no likes or places you can see followers, just comments and reactions (Cavender, 2022). The purpose of the current study is to examine BeREAL use, alcohol consumption, and FOMO. The data for this study was collected from an ongoing survey conducted at a midsize midwestern university. The survey measured the students’ FOMO using the FOMO and College Alcohol Use (Przybylski et al., 2013). There were numerous questions about the participants posting their drinking on social media and how seeing people’s post of alcohol affects their drinking habits. BeREAL users will be more likely to drink at higher levels and also have higher levels of FOMO. Information from this study could be used to build interventions or prevention efforts in college students. Specifically, social media use might be a marker for heavy alcohol consumption or might be impacting alcohol consumption levels.
Author(s): Maya Nathan, Psychology and Premedical Studies Major
Advisor(s): Rose Marie Ward, Department of Kinesiology, Nutrition and Health
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