Emotion in social reflection and comparison situations: intuitive, systematic, and exploratory approaches

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Social Psychology
• Emotion Research

Background:

• Social comparison theory posits that individuals evaluate their own abilities and opinions by comparing themselves to others.
• Self-evaluation maintenance (SEM) model explains how people maintain their self-esteem in the face of social comparisons.
• Emotions experienced during social comparison are influenced by the relevance of the activity and the relationship with the comparison target.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the emotions evoked by social comparison scenarios.
• To examine how relationship closeness and activity relevance moderate these emotions.
• To test the applicability of the SEM model to emotional experiences in social comparison.

Main Methods:

• 26 subjects recalled and described social situations involving comparisons with close or distant others.
• Participants rated the experienced emotions (18 types) and situation characteristics (Smith & Ellsworth, 1985).
• Data analyzed using intuitive hypotheses, the Smith and Ellsworth framework, and exploratory analyses.

Main Results:

• Situations varied significantly in reported pride, jealousy/envy, pride in other, boredom, and happiness.
• Closeness of the other and relevance of the activity influenced the specific emotions experienced.
• Specific emotion patterns emerged based on whether the other performed better or worse than the self.

Conclusions:

• Social comparison outcomes significantly shape emotional experiences.
• The findings support and extend emotion theories by detailing specific emotional responses to social comparison.
• Results align with the SEM model, highlighting its role in understanding self-esteem regulation through social comparison.