Social-Judgment Comparisons in Daily Life

Area of Science:

• Social Psychology
• Social Cognition
• Interpersonal Relationships

Background:

• Social comparison is fundamental to judgment, but daily social-judgment comparisons remain understudied.
• Understanding how individuals compare others in everyday life is crucial for social psychology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate daily social-judgment comparison processes and their longitudinal effects.
• To examine the frequency and direction (upward vs. downward) of social comparisons.
• To assess the impact of social comparisons on perceptions, closeness, and relationship satisfaction.

Main Methods:

• A 7-day experience-sampling design with 93 participants and 3,960 surveys.
• Included end-of-week and 6-month follow-up assessments.
• Analyzed comparison frequency, direction, and subsequent relationship outcomes.

Main Results:

• Participants more frequently compared close versus distant contacts and engaged in more downward than upward comparisons.
• Downward comparisons predicted more positive perceptions, greater closeness, and higher relationship satisfaction.
• Frequent downward comparisons with a contact predicted increased closeness at 1 week and 6 months.
• Upward comparisons prompted protective strategies (downplaying domain importance) for close contacts, enhancing closeness.

Conclusions:

• Daily social comparisons, particularly downward ones, significantly impact interpersonal relationships.
• Downward social comparisons foster positive perceptions and strengthen relationship bonds over time.
• Individuals employ distinct strategies when making upward comparisons, especially to protect close relationships.