📄 Abstract
The Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) has emerged as a significant behavioural and economic phenomenon influencing consumer spending in the digital era. Rapid expansion of social media platforms, influencer marketing, e-commerce, and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven personalized recommendations has intensified consumers' desire to remain socially connected and participate in trending consumption experiences. Although FOMO has received considerable attention in consumer behaviour research, limited studies have comparatively examined its influence on the spending behaviour of Millennials and Generation Z in the Indian context. This study aims to bridge this gap by analysing the behavioural differences between these two generations and identifying the factors that significantly influence FOMO-driven purchase decisions. The research introduces an innovative conceptual framework that integrates social media engagement, perceived scarcity, AI-driven personalized marketing, social comparison, and financial self-control to explain consumer spending behaviour. The novelty of the study lies in incorporating financial self-control as a moderating variable and AI-driven personalization as an emerging predictor of FOMO-induced purchasing behaviour, providing a broader understanding of digital consumption than existing models.
🏷️ Keywords
📚 How to Cite:
Dr. N Subbukrishna Sastry, Dr. Manjula Mallya M , THE FOMO ECONOMY IN INDIA: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF CONSUMER SPENDING BEHAVIOUR AMONG MILLENNIALS AND GENERATION Z , Volume 12 , Issue 7, July 2026, International Journal of Global Economic Light (JGEL) , Pages: 1 - 10 ,