I cannot enquire into whether the abolition of private property is expedient or advantageous. The social learning branch of social process theory suggests that people learn criminal behavior much as they learn conventional behavior. Informal social communication theory was about the power of the group over the person. According to festinger s theory of social comparison people gain selfknowledge and selfawareness by comparing themselves to others. This may occur with reference to a physical reality. According to social comparison theory, humans have a need to assess their personal characteristics and abilities, and they do so by comparing themselves to others. Festingers social comparison theory provides an important. The social comparison theory was developed by social psychologist leon festinger. Even more so, according to gilbert, price, and allan 1995, the need to compare the self with others is found in many other species as well, and has evolved as a very adaptive mechanism for sizing up ones competitors.
Social comparison theory and drive for self evaluation psychology essay. People make all kinds of judgments about themselves, and one of the key ways that we do this is through social comparison, or analyzing the self in relation to. This book compiles findings from the research center for group dynamics at the university of michigan. Jun 11, 2017 leon festinger mentioned his hypotheses in his book entitled social comparison processes that gives substantial exploration of his theory. Theory and experiment in social communication festinger, leon on. We systematically analyze the role of social comparison processes in organizations. When abilities are being evaluated, pressures toward uniformity combine. Access to society journal content varies across our titles. But i am able to recognize that the psychological premises on which the system is based are an untenable illusion. In contrast, workers whose wage was not cut but who witnessed their team members.
We draw not only on research that has directly examined competition but also on studies in social comparison and related fields that have significant implications for its analysis. Social comparison processes in organizations sciencedirect. A number of vocational psychologists have examined the process of individual career. A theory of social comparison processes leon festinger. A persons cognition his opinions and beliefs about the situation in which he exists and his. Social comparison theory assumes that people tend to evaluate their successes, failures and opinions in relation to others festinger, 1954. People tend to compete with those with similar st slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. Pdf a theory of social comparison processes semantic. Social comparison theory social comparison theory the social comparison theory was proposed by the social psychologist leon festinger in 1954.
However, there is no existing measure to evaluate adolescents motives for comparing themselves with others when they think about pregnancy. According to the theory, this process is most likely to occur when a. Source for information on social comparison processes. A social comparison approach to organizational choice under what circumstances does social information affect choices. In this timely handbook a distinguished roster of researchers and theoreticians describe where the field has been since its. This study integrated social comparison theory and selfesteem into the objectification theory framework to broaden our understanding of sexual objectification as it relates to body shame and disordered eating. Social comparison motivations or motives include selfevaluation, selfenhancement, and upward and downward social comparison tigges, 2009. Festinger defined two types of comparisons upward comparisons and downward comparisons. Psychometric properties of the social comparison motives scale. Social pressures in informal groups internet archive. The members of this group conducted a program of research, including two field studies and a number of laboratory experiments, in the area of social communication.
Festinger argued that humans have a drive to evaluate their opinions and abilities. This site is like a library, you could find million book here by using search box in the header. For this, we are indebted to festinger 1954, whose influential theory of social comparison introduced over a half century ago subsequently gave rise to more refined conceptual developments e. Social comparison theory an overview sciencedirect topics. Lets say you go grocery shopping at food 4 less, and there is a person in front of you and the cashier tells him the amount due and asks him if he would like to donate to the childrens memorial. What are some potential consequences or faults of the importance of status and the resulting competition in todays society. If you have access to a journal via a society or association membership, please browse to your society journal, select an article to view, and follow the instructions in this box. Plato spoke of selfunderstanding and absolute standards. According to leon festingeras 1954 social comparison theory, we have a need to evaluate our opinions and abilities, to figure out our strengths and weaknesses, in order to have an accurate view of ourselves. Feb 21, 2014 the social comparison theory was proposed by the social psychologist leon festinger in 1954. Festingers 1957 cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we have an inner drive to hold all our attitudes and beliefs in harmony and avoid disharmony or dissonance. Effects of upward and downward social comparison on mood states. Festingers social comparison theory by sara longmire on prezi.
According to festingers social comparison theory, people. Given the minimal research conducted in combining these areas within the. Early research in social psychology on level of aspiration and on reference groups contributed to leon festingers social comparison theory, which he proposed in 1954. His first hypothesis states that there exist, in the human organism, a drive to evaluate his opinions and abilities. It has been widely acknowledged that social comparison is a central feature of human social life. This article presents the development of an instrument based on social comparison theory, the social comparison motives scale scms, and the results of its initial reliability and validity testing. Later published as social comparison processes in organizations. Today, thirtyfive social and cognitive psychologists who share a. A theory of social comparison processes center for human science. People prefer to compare themselves to others in a close proximity such as coworkers, friends, family members, etc. Fifty years ago, festinger 1954 published a theory of social comparison.
Leon festinger 1954 different types of comparison we use objective criteria when available o how tall am i how much do i weigh how fast did i run. One theory which has been proposed to explain the etiology and maintenance of eating disorders is social comparison theory. As earlier mentioned, social comparison theory festinger, 1954 posits that individuals have a natural drive to compare their own attributes and abilities with the abilities and attributes of others. The original formulation of social comparison theory festinger 1954 demonstrated how, in the absence of objective standards, individuals use other people to fulfill their informational needs to evaluate their own opinions and abilities. Read online a theory of social comparison processes leon festinger book pdf free download link book now. Research center for dynamics, institute for social research, university of michigan, 1950. Not all who experience the same conditions turn out the same way.
Although festinger 1954 was the first to name the theory of social comparison, the concept of comparison with others has existed since the first social philosophers. Social comparisons may be thought to serve two basic functions. Bodyrelated social comparison and disordered eating among. Festinger s social comparison theory provides an important rationale for how individuals come to know themselves. Social comparison theory in psychology verywell mind. According to festingers theory of social comparison people gain selfknowledge and selfawareness by comparing themselves to others. This paper furthers festingers views on group influences of opinions and applies it to abilities as well. Leon festinger social comparison theory people need to compare their abilities against those of others. A theory of social comparison processes, retrieved september 12, 2007, from hum. There exists, in the human organism, a drive to evaluate his opinions and his abilities.
Aug 31, 2000 comparison of objects, events, and situations is integral to judgment. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Pengaruh self esteem, social comparison, thin ideal internalization, dan rasa syukur terhadap body. People have a need to evaluate their opinions and abilities. Lagunas february 20, 2014 social psychology social comparison theory we often do not realize we compare ourselves to those around us weather it is at work, school, or at the grocery store.
The hypothesis that social comparison processes and associated fairness concerns affect the labor market has a long history. All books are in clear copy here, and all files are secure so dont worry about it. Festinger based his theory on nine hypotheses see table 4. According to social comparison theory festinger, we compare ourselves to others in order to evaluate the opinions, abilities and our inner states, especially when there is no objective criterion for evaluation. People make all kinds of judgments about themselves, and one of the key ways that we do this is through social comparison, or analyzing the self in. Theory and experiment in social communication festinger. What other theories could maybe relate back to this theory. Apr 08, 2017 the social comparison theory was developed by social psychologist leon festinger. Pdf a theory of social comparison processes semantic scholar. Social comparison theory festinger was the first to coin the term social comparison however, the general concepts can be traced back to aristotle and plato.
Social process theories 149 section 5 the social structural theories discussed in the previous section only explain part of the possible reason that kody scott chose the path in life he did. Social comparison theory and drive for self evaluation. Comparison of objects, events, and situations is integral to judgment. Therefore, to increase the efficiency of the comparison process, people. This study examined the implications for social comparison theory of the proposition that women have lower selfconfidence than men when there is a socially defined standard of performance. Publications national criminal justice reference service. Sep 11, 2012 one theory which has been proposed to explain the etiology and maintenance of eating disorders is social comparison theory.
In this paper we shall present a further development of a previously published theory concerning opinion influence processes in social groups 7. Intro to psychology b class37 social comparison according. This compilation presents the reports of the laboratory studies together with a theoretical orientation of the work that has been. A social comparison perspective of executive remuneration. A theory of social comparison processes leon festinger, 1954. Organizational behavior and human decision processes, 102, 2241. Social comparison theory why dont we use objective criteria. Motivation and emotionbook2014social comparison and. Abstract we systematically analyze the role of social comparison processes in organizations. Social comparison theory the theory that i had chosen to discuss and research about would happen to be the social comparison theory. The theory is a term referring to the process through which people come to know themselves by evaluating their own attitudes, abilities, and beliefs in comparison with others cherry, n. A recent test of social information processing theory showed little effect of anonymous social cues on choices of brief tasks kilduff regan, 1988.
Social comparison theory essay sample new york essays. While opinions and abilities may, at first glance, seem to be quite different things, there is a close functional tie between them. In this theory, it simply asserts that the process in which people learn about themselves by comparing themselves to other members of society. Social comparison processes in organizations request pdf. Many criticisms arose regarding festingers similarity hypothesis. Leon festinger 1954 different types of comparison we use objective criteria when available o how tall am i. In order to achieve the most objective information should compare ourselves to people who are less or more at our level, but we tend to compare ourselves to people. Social comparison iowa state university digital repository. The old one states that members of a particular group would want to be parallel with each other because a uniform agreement must be made so that the group is able to come up with a common decision. May 04, 2020 in 1951 festinger moved to a tenuretrack position at the university of minnesota, where schachter was already on the faculty. Specifically, we describe how social comparison processes have been used to explain six key areas of.
An important factor here is the principle of cognitive consistency, the focus of festingers 1957 theory of. According to festingers social comparison theory, people often form judgments about their traits and abilities by comparing themselves with others. Leon festingers theory of social comparison processes festinger, 1954. Social comparison theory was first proposed in 1954 by psychologist leon festinger and suggested that people have an innate drive to evaluate themselves, often in comparison to others. Integrating social comparison theory and selfesteem.
In the present article, we discuss current work in social comparison in the context of a series of major theoretical developments that have occurred in the past 5 decades in the following chronological order. I have no concern with any economic criticisms of the communist system. Attitudes may change because of factors within the person. Deutsch and krauss argued that people actually seek out dissimilar others in their comparisons maintaining that this is important for providing valuable selfknowledge, as demonstrated in research. Festingers social comparison theory provides an important rationale for how individuals come to know themselves. This further development has enabled us to extend the theory to deal with other areas, in addition to opinion formation, in which social. University of groningen the effects of social comparison. The theory explains how individuals evaluate their own opinions and abilities by comparing themselves to others in order to reduce uncertainty in these. In this paper we shall present a further development of a previously published theory concerning. Comparing ourselves to people who are worse than we are on a particular trait or ability.
People tend to compete with those with similar status to themselves, and not with those much higher or lower than themselves. Specifically, we describe how social comparison processes have been used to explain six key areas of organizational inquiry. Leon festingers social comparison theory the psychology. According to festingers social comparison theory people. Festingers social comparison theory psychology essay. In 1951 festinger moved to a tenuretrack position at the university of minnesota, where schachter was already on the faculty. Differential association theory, formulated by sutherland, holds that criminality results from a persons perceiving an excess of definitions in favor of crime over definitions that uphold conventional values. Social comparison theory, initially proposed by social psychologist leon festinger in 1954, centers on the belief that there is a drive within individuals to gain accurate selfevaluations. After four decades of research, the topic of social comparison is more popular than ever. His first hypothesis is that in humans there exists a drive to evaluate his opinions and abilities by comparison with the opinions and abilities of others. Social comparison theory social comparison processes festinger, 1954 involve social actors and decision makers constantly relying on a wide range of social comparisons to secure equity in the setting of their expected rewards. According to social comparison theory, humans have a need to assess their personal characteristics and abilities, and they do so by comparing themselves to others 3. They act together in the manner in which they affect behavior.