Affective responses to social comparison: a study among disabled individuals

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Social Psychology
• Rehabilitation Psychology

Background:

• Social comparison theory explains how individuals evaluate themselves by comparing to others.
• Perceived control is a key psychological resource influencing coping and well-being.
• Understanding social comparison effects is crucial for supporting individuals with disabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of upward and downward social comparisons on the affect of individuals receiving disability insurance.
• To examine the moderating role of perceived control in social comparison effects.
• To explore the influence of comparison dimensions (problem severity vs. coping success) on affective responses.

Main Methods:

• 112 individuals receiving Disablement Insurance Act payments participated.
• Participants were exposed to fictitious interviews featuring upward or downward social comparisons.
• Comparison content varied in target's problem severity or coping success.

Main Results:

• Upward comparison led to more positive affect than downward comparison, but only for individuals with high perceived control.
• Downward comparison consistently resulted in more negative affect than upward comparison, regardless of perceived control.
• Identification with the upward target, particularly regarding coping success, was stronger in high-control individuals and mediated positive affect.

Conclusions:

• Perceived control moderates the positive affective benefits of upward social comparison among disabled individuals.
• Downward social comparison generally elicits negative affect, highlighting potential risks.
• Identification plays a role in how individuals process social comparison information and its emotional consequences.