International Encyclopedia of Communication Online

Extract

The central idea of social comparison theory is that individuals often assess how well they are doing by comparing themselves with others around them. When →  Festinger ( 1954 ) originally developed the theory, he argued that individuals want an accurate assessment of their opinions and performance, and that in the absence of objective standards, they look to others (preferably those who are similar in a relevant dimension) for →  Information about their relative standing. Individuals, he argued, seek to be right in their opinions, and have a unidirectional drive upward for their abilities. Much of Festinger's early work focused on individuals comparing their opinions with those of others. In a series of studies, he examined the conditions under which individuals tended to conform or dissent with other people's judgments (e.g., about the length of a line). In the face of consistent opposition, most people conformed; in the presence of at least one other dissenting opinion, most people were willing to express their own dissenting viewpoint. Other early work confirmed the notion that individuals' self-evaluations change depending on the types of comparisons available. In a classic study by Morse and Gergen (1970) , university students competed for a job with another applicant who was either organized and well groomed (Mr. Clean) or unkempt and disorganized (Mr. Dirty). Those competing ... log in or subscribe to read full text