Book · 2015
Comparing Favorably
Thomas Ashby Wills, James M. Sandy
Oxford Clinical Psychology
Abstract
This chapter considers how people may use social comparison to cope with psychological distress arising from sources such as negative life events, failure experiences, and threats to self-esteem. It includes the theory of social comparison, the theory of downward comparison, and the mechanisms of downward comparison (selection of target, constructed comparisons, derogation of an outgroup, counterfactual thinking), as well as current issues in social comparison research.