In Australia, toilet paper is out of stock. Consumers go so far as to fight to take the last roll of the shelf. Similar scenes take place in England. In Hong Kong, two men were arrested on suspicion of having robbed a delivery man to steal hundreds of rolls of toilet paper from him. Elsewhere, people buy huge stocks of pasta and rice. The common denominator? Fear of missing something from the coronavirus.
This panic and these frantic purchases would indeed be due to social anxiety, itself caused by a syndrome called Fear of missing out (Fomo) or, in French, the fear of missing something. This syndrome pushes us to follow the behavior of others and is notably fueled by the multiple images of empty supermarkets or shopping carts filled with toilet paper disseminated on social networks.
Jomo vs. Fomo!
Studies have taken a close interest in Fomo. For example, researchers assure that this syndrome is amplified by a feeling of insecurity, here linked to the worldwide spread of the coronavirus. Fomo is also said to be more pronounced in individuals at the end of the day and at the end of the week.
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And if the syndrome has been increased tenfold by the advent of social networks, it has always existed. For example, in front of a tray of petit fours, hesitation is frequent between this or that flavor. The reason ? The fear of missing the best petit four. Likewise when a movie buff wants to get a new television and finds himself in store facing twenty different screens! It takes a long time to not miss the best TV.
Against Fomo, a solution: Jomo, the "Joy of missing out" or, in French ... the joy of missing something.