Cited by 2,705Social and Intergroup PsychologyEmotions and Moral BehaviorPsychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 98 of the 98 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Downward comparison principles in social psychology

Wills, Thomas A.·1981·Psychological Bulletin

Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

The literature of social psychology contains a number of phenomena that appear to be paradoxical. For example, persons who face a threatening experience prefer to affiliate with threatened others rather than with nonthreatened others (Schachter, 1959), and persons in groups in which reward is equally distributed are less satisfied compared with persons in groups that include one particularly unfortunate member (Brickman, 1975). The purpose of this article is to show that these phenomena are best construed as social comparison processes and that various phenomena derive from one basic process termed downward comparison; the essence of this process is that persons can enhance their own subjective well-being by comparing themselves with a less fortunate other. In this article I show that downward comparison is a process evoked by negative affect, that there is considerable evidence for self-enhancing comparison processes, and that downward comparison effects are involved in several areas of social-psycho logical research.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1037/0033-2909.90.2.245

Cites

98 of 98 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

This paper’s full text isn’t openly available, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

A theory of social comparison processes
Festinger, L. (1954) · Human Relations · doi:10.1177/001872675400700202 · Cited by 20,926
Aggression: A Social Learning Analysis
Bandura, A. (1973) · Stanford Law Review · doi:10.2307/1227918 · Cited by 4,302
In-group bias in the minimal intergroup situation: A cognitive-motivational analysis.
Brewer, M. B. (1979) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.86.2.307 · Cited by 3,411
The “false consensus effect”: An egocentric bias in social perception and attribution processes
Ross, L., Greene, D., & House, P. (1977) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/0022-1031(77)90049-x · Cited by 3,139
Experiments in Intergroup Discrimination
Tajfel, H. (1970) · Scientific American · doi:10.1038/scientificamerican1170-96 · Cited by 2,577
Intergroup Conflict And Cooperation: The Robbers Cave Experiment
Sherif, M. (2013) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 2,344
The halo effect: Evidence for unconscious alteration of judgments.
Nisbett, R. E., & Wilson, T. D. (1977) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.35.4.250 · Cited by 2,021
The Psychology of affiliation
Beech, H. R. (1963) · Journal of Psychosomatic Research · doi:10.1016/0022-3999(63)90032-1 · Cited by 1,679
Depression and the response of others.
Coyne, J. C. (1976) · Journal of Abnormal Psychology · doi:10.1037/0021-843x.85.2.186 · Cited by 1,464
Hedonic relativism and planning the good society
Brickman, P., & Campbell, D. T. (1971) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 1,357

Show all 97 references

Sorted by citations

Items 201–300 of 1,011

The gender gap in occupational role attainment: A social dominance approach.
Pratto, F., Stallworth, L. M., Sidanius, J., & Siers, B. (1997) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.72.1.37 · Cited by 271
When do stereotypes become really consensual? Investigating the group-based dynamics of the consensualization process
Haslam, S. A., Turner, J. C., Oakes, P. J., Reynolds, K. J., Eggins, R. A., Nolan, M., & Tweedie, J. H. (1998) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/(sici)1099-0992(199809/10)28:5 · Cited by 110
The symbolic self in evolutionary context
Sedikides, C., & Skowronski, J. J. (1997) · Personality and Social Psychology Review · doi:10.1207/s15327957pspr0101_6 · Cited by 251
Coping with Group-Based Discrimination
Branscombe, N. R., & Ellemers, N. (1998) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-012679130-3/50046-6 · Cited by 250
Marginal and mindful: Deviants in social interactions.
Frable, D. E. S., Blackstone, T., & Scherbaum, C. (1990) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.59.1.140 · Cited by 262
Factors underlying illusory self-assessment of driving skill in males and females
MCKENNA, F. P., Stanier, R. A., & Lewis, C. (1991) · Accident Analysis & Prevention · doi:10.1016/0001-4575(91)90034-3 · Cited by 241
Who's that Girl: Television's Role in the Body Image Development of Young White and Black Women
Schooler, D. E., Ward, L. M., Merriwether, A. M., & Caruthers, A. S. (2004) · Psychology of Women Quarterly · doi:10.1111/j.1471-6402.2004.00121.x · Cited by 241
Social comparison on Facebook: Motivation, affective consequences, self-esteem, and Facebook fatigue
Cramer, E. M., Song, H., & Drent, A. M. (2016) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2016.07.049 · Cited by 240
“…contends that LSEs engage in downward comparison to feel better about themselves by comparing toworseoff others (self-enhancement), while HSEs compare themselves with better-off others to improve the self (self-improvement; see Wills, 1981; Aspinwall & Taylor, 1993; Jones & Buckingham, 2005).”
BackgroundResultInfluential
Finding Positive Meaning in a Stressful Event and Coping
Thompson, S. C. G. (1985) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1207/s15324834basp0604_1 · Cited by 251
Culture and Social Comparison Seeking: The Role of Self-Motives
White, K., & Lehman, D. R. (2004) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167204271326 · Cited by 250
The waxing and waning of the social self: Assimilation and contrast in social comparison.
Pelham, B. W., & Wachsmuth, J. O. (1995) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.69.5.825 · Cited by 248
Perceived group and personal discrimination: differential effects on personal self‐esteem
Bourguignon, D., Seron, E., Yzerbyt, V. Y., & Herman, G. (2006) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.326 · Cited by 235
Two Roads to Positive Regard: Implicit and Explicit Self-Evaluation and Culture
Hetts, J. J., Sakuma, M., & Pelham, B. W. (1999) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1006/jesp.1999.1391 · Cited by 232
Compatibility Effects in Judgment and Choice
Slovic, P., Griffin, D., & Tversky, A. (2002) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511808098.014 · Cited by 235
Social Comparison, Stress, and Coping
Taylor, S. E., Buunk, B. P., & Aspinwall, L. G. (1990) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167290161006 · Cited by 231
Social Comparison Theory and Deception in the Interpersonal Exchange of Consumption Information
Argo, J., White, K., & Dahl, D. W. (2006) · Journal of Consumer Research · doi:10.1086/504140 · Cited by 230
Clarifying the role of social comparison in the big-fish–little-pond effect (BFLPE): An integrative study.
Huguet, P., Dumas, F., Marsh, H. W., Régner, I., Wheeler, L. S., Suls, J. M., Seaton, M., & Nezlek, J. B. (2009) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0015558 · Cited by 229
The Power, but Not the Glory: How Women Empower Themselves Through Religion
Ozorak, E. W. (1996) · Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion · doi:10.2307/1386392 · Cited by 229
Social Cognition: A Look at Motivated Strategies
Showers, C. J., & Cantor, N. L. (1985) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.ps.36.020185.001423 · Cited by 229
Two faces of social comparison on Facebook: The interplay between social comparison orientation, emotions, and psychological well-being
Park, S. Y., & Baek, Y. M. (2018) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2017.10.028 · Cited by 221
“As shown in social psychology research (Buunk & Ybema, 2003; Gibbons & Buunk, 1999; Smith, 2000; Wills, 1981; Wood, Giordano-Beech, Taylor, Michela, & Gaus, 1994), comparing the self with a superior other may result in positive emotions like inspiration or optimism, or negative emotions like…”
BackgroundInfluential
A Comparison of Symbolic Racism Theory and Social Dominance Theory as Explanations for Racial Policy Attitudes
Sidanius, J., Devereux, E. A., & Felicia Pratto, B. (1992) · The Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/00224545.1992.9924713 · Cited by 227
What young people want to know when: Effects of mastery and ability goals on interest in different kinds of social comparisons.
Butler, R. (1992) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.62.6.934 · Cited by 242
Injecting drug users: A stigmatised and stigmatising population
Simmonds, L., & Coomber, R. (2007) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2007.09.002 · Cited by 226
The Mediating Roles of Upward Social Comparison and Self-esteem and the Moderating Role of Social Comparison Orientation in the Association between Social Networking Site Usage and Subjective Well-Being
Wang, J.-L., Wang, H.-Z., Gaskin, J., & Hawk, S. (2017) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00771 · Cited by 225
“Upward comparison occurs when people compare themselves to someone they perceive to be superior (Wheeler, 1966), whereas a downward comparison is defined by making a comparison with someone perceived to be inferior (Wills, 1981).”
Background
Strategies of social comparison among people with low self-esteem: Self-protection and self-enhancement.
Wood, J. V., Giordano-Beech, M., Taylor, K. L., Michela, J. L., & al, E. (1994) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.67.4.713 · Cited by 245
Gender, Entitlement, and the Distribution of Family Labor
Major, B. (1993) · Journal of Social Issues · doi:10.1111/j.1540-4560.1993.tb01173.x · Cited by 221
Social comparison, self‐esteem and depression in people with intellectual disability
Dagnan, D., & Sandhu, S. (1999) · Journal of Intellectual Disability Research · doi:10.1046/j.1365-2788.1999.043005372.x · Cited by 218
Optimistic bias about online privacy risks: Testing the moderating effects of perceived controllability and prior experience
Cho, H., Lee, J., & Chung, S. (2010) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2010.02.012 · Cited by 217
Age stereotypes and self-views in later life: Evaluating rival assumptions
Rothermund, K., & Brandtstädter, J. (2003) · International Journal of Behavioral Development · doi:10.1080/01650250344000208 · Cited by 217
The perceived impact of the mass media: Reconsidering the third person effect
Duck, J. M., & Mullin, B. (1995) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2420250107 · Cited by 217
Personality Counts for a Lot: Predictors of Mental and Physical Health of Spouse Caregivers in Two Disease Groups
Hooker, K. A., Monahan, D. J., Bowman, S. R., Frazier, L. D., & Shifren, K. (1998) · The Journals of Gerontology Series B · doi:10.1093/geronb/53b.2.p73 · Cited by 217
Building Organization Theory from First Principles: The Self-Enhancement Motive and Understanding Power and Influence
Pfeffer, J., & Fong, C. T. (2005) · Organization Science · doi:10.1287/orsc.1050.0132 · Cited by 213
Happiness and travel mode switching: Findings from a Swiss public transportation experiment
Abou-Zeid, M., Witter, R., Bierlaire, M., Kaufmann, V., & Ben-Akiva, M. E. (2011) · Transport Policy · doi:10.1016/j.tranpol.2011.09.009 · Cited by 221
The Availability Heuristic Revisited: Ease of Recall and Content of Recall as Distinct Sources of Information
Schwarz, N., & Vaughn, L. A. (2002) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511808098.007 · Cited by 215
Social Identity and Social Comparison
Hogg, M. A. (2000) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4615-4237-7_19 · Cited by 220
Appearance-Related Social Comparisons: The Role of Contingent Self-Esteem and Self-Perceptions of Attractiveness
Patrick, H., Neighbors, C., & Knee, C. R. (2004) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167203261891 · Cited by 211
“Looking up and feeling down”. The influence of mobile social networking site use on upward social comparison, self-esteem, and well-being of adult smartphone users
Schmuck, D., Karsay, K., Matthes, J., & Stevic, A. (2019) · Telematics and Informatics · doi:10.1016/j.tele.2019.101240 · Cited by 241
When Predictions Fail: The Dilemma of Unrealistic Optimism
Armor, D. A., & Taylor, S. E. (2002) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511808098.021 · Cited by 211
Investigation of Body Comparison Among Adolescent Girls1
Schutz, H. K., Paxton, S. J., & Wertheim, E. H. (2002) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2002.tb00264.x · Cited by 220
Jeer Pressure: The Behavioral Effects of Observing Ridicule of Others
Janes, L. M., & Olson, J. M. (2000) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167200266006 · Cited by 206
Exploring the When and Why of Schadenfreude
Smith, R. H., Powell, C. A. J., Combs, D. J. Y., & Schurtz, D. R. (2009) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/j.1751-9004.2009.00181.x · Cited by 209
Praise or blame? Affective influences on attributions for achievement.
Forgas, J. P., Bower, G. H., & Moylan, S. J. (1990) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.59.4.809 · Cited by 202
Frequent social comparisons and destructive emotions and behaviors: the dark side of social comparisons
White, J. B., Langer, E. J., Yariv, L., & Welch, J. C. (2006) · Journal of Adult Development · doi:10.1007/s10804-006-9005-0 · Cited by 207
Authoritarianism revisited: genetic and environmental influences examined in twins reared apart and together
McCourt, K., Bouchard, T. J., Lykken, D. T., Tellegen, A., & Keyes, M. A. (1999) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(99)00048-3 · Cited by 203
Subjective socioeconomic status causes aggression: A test of the theory of social deprivation.
Greitemeyer, T., & Sagioglou, C. (2016) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/pspi0000058 · Cited by 202
Keeping (Future) Rivals Down: Temporal Social Comparison Predicts Coworker Social Undermining via Future Status Threat and Envy
Reh, S., Tröster, C., & Quaquebeke, N. V. (2017) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/apl0000281 · Cited by 184
“Our studies also raise a question: Would classically “upward comparisons” still be experienced as threatening when individuals also consider their relative development (Exline & Lobel, 1999, 2001; Wills, 1981)?”
Background
‘Seek and ye shall find’: antecedents of assimilation and contrast in social comparison
Mussweiler, T. (2001) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.75 · Cited by 202
Transference in Interpersonal Relations: Inferences and Affect Based on Significant‐Other Representations
Andersen, S. M., & Baum, A. (1994) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1994.tb00306.x · Cited by 205
Exploring the affective underpinnings of dynamic managerial capabilities: How managers' emotion regulation behaviors mobilize resources for their firms
Huy, Q. N., & Zott, C. (2018) · Strategic Management Journal · doi:10.1002/smj.2971 · Cited by 204
Social comparison orientation: a new perspective on those who do and those who don't compare with others
Buunk, A. P., & Gibbons, F. X. (2005) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511584329.003 · Cited by 200
Choosing the Joneses : Endogenous Goals and Reference Standards
Knell, M., & Falk, A. (2004) · Econstor (Econstor) · Cited by 195
Name Letter Preferences Are Not Merely Mere Exposure: Implicit Egotism as Self-Regulation
Jones, J. T., Pelham, B. W., Mirenberg, M. C., & Hetts, J. J. (2002) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1006/jesp.2001.1497 · Cited by 199
Is valuing positive emotion associated with life satisfaction?
Bastian, B. B., Kuppens, P., Roover, K. D., & Diener, E. (2014) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/a0036466 · Cited by 214
Do Positive Self-Perceptions Have a “Dark Side”? Examination of the Link between Perceptual Bias and Aggression
David, C. F., & Kistner, J. A. (2000) · Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology · doi:10.1023/a:1005164925300 · Cited by 195
Exploring the association of social comparison with depression and anxiety: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
McCarthy, P. A., & Nexhmedin Morina, B. (2020) · Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy · doi:10.1002/cpp.2452 · Cited by 196
Reluctant to change: Self-enhancing responses to diverging performance measures
Audia, P. G., & Brion, S. (2006) · Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes · doi:10.1016/j.obhdp.2006.01.007 · Cited by 204
Social comparison and negative self-evaluations: An application to depression
Swallow, S. R., & Kuiper, N. A. (1988) · Clinical Psychology Review · doi:10.1016/0272-7358(88)90049-9 · Cited by 192
Downward Comparison as a Coping Mechanism
Wills, T. A. (1987) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4757-9865-4_10 · Cited by 192
Sympathetic Magical Thinking: The Contagion and Similarity “Heuristics”
Rozin, P. N., & Nemeroff, C. J. (2002) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511808098.013 · Cited by 195
Impact of Popularity Indications on Readers' Selective Exposure to Online News
Knobloch‐Westerwick, S., Sharma, N., Hansen, D. L., & Alter, S. M. (2005) · Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media · doi:10.1207/s15506878jobem4903_3 · Cited by 191
Internal and External Frames of Reference for Academic Self-Concept
Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2002) · Educational Psychologist · doi:10.1207/s15326985ep3704_3 · Cited by 187
Exploring University ESL/EFL Teachers’ Emotional Well-Being and Emotional Regulation in the United States, Japan and Austria
Talbot, K. R., & Mercer, S. (2018) · Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics · doi:10.1515/cjal-2018-0031 · Cited by 207
Defensive pessimism, optimism, and stimulating alternatives: Some ups and downs of prefactual and counterfactual thinking.
Sanna, L. J. (1996) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.71.5.1020 · Cited by 188
Motives for Social Comparison
Helgeson, V. S., & Mickelson, K. D. (1995) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/01461672952111008 · Cited by 189
The Oxford Handbook of Personality and Social Psychology
(2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190224837.001.0001 · Cited by 191
The primacy of morality in impression development: Theory, research, and future directions
Brambilla, M., Sacchi, S., Rusconi, P., & Goodwin, G. P. (2021) · Advances in experimental social psychology · doi:10.1016/bs.aesp.2021.03.001 · Cited by 188
How alike is it versus how likely is it: A disjunction fallacy in probability judgments.
Bar‐Hillel, M., & Neter, E. (1993) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.65.6.1119 · Cited by 192
Social Comparisons and Adjustment Among Cardiac Patients1
Helgeson, V. S., & Taylor, S. E. (1993) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1993.tb01027.x · Cited by 188
On The Role Of Encoding Processes In Stereotype Maintenance
von Hippel, W., Sekaquaptewa, D., & Vargas, P. T. (1995) · Advances in experimental social psychology · doi:10.1016/s0065-2601(08)60406-2 · Cited by 190
Identification with Academics and Motivation to Achieve in School: How the Structure of the Self Influences Academic Outcomes
Osborne, J. W., & Jones, B. D. (2011) · Educational Psychology Review · doi:10.1007/s10648-011-9151-1 · Cited by 214
The effect of social comparisons on commute well-being
Abou-Zeid, M., & Ben-Akiva, M. E. (2011) · Transportation Research Part A Policy and Practice · doi:10.1016/j.tra.2011.01.011 · Cited by 200
Confluence of Self-Esteem Regulation Mechanisms: On Integrating the Self-Zoo
Tesser, A., Crepaz, N., Collins, J. C., Cornell, D. P., & Beach, S. R. H. (2000) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/01461672002612003 · Cited by 187
Cognitive Processing of Traumas: The Role of Intrusive Thoughts and Reappraisals1
Greenberg, M. A. (1995) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1995.tb02618.x · Cited by 189
Accountability as a deterrent to self-enhancement: The search for mechanisms.
Sedikides, C., Herbst, K. C., Hardin, D. P., & Dardis, G. J. (2002) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.83.3.592 · Cited by 194
Improving productivity and creativity in online groups through social comparison process: New evidence for asynchronous electronic brainstorming
Michinov, N., & Primois, C. (2004) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2004.02.004 · Cited by 186
Could it happen to you? Predicting the impact of downward comparisons on the self.
Lockwood, P. (2002) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.82.3.343 · Cited by 185
Effects of Upward and Downward Social Comparison on Mood States
Gibbons, F. X., & Gerrard, M. (1989) · Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1521/jscp.1989.8.1.14 · Cited by 184
The Interactive Roles Of Stability And Level Of Self-Esteem: Research and Theory
Kernis, M. H., & Waschull, S. B. (1995) · Advances in experimental social psychology · doi:10.1016/s0065-2601(08)60404-9 · Cited by 187
"A vengefulness of the impotent": The pain of in-group inferiority and schadenfreude toward successful out-groups.
Leach, C. W., & Spears, R. (2008) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0012629 · Cited by 182
Status protection in high status minority groups
Ellemers, N., Doosje, B., van Knippenberg, A., & Wilke, H. (1992) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2420220203 · Cited by 182
The envious mind
Miceli, M., & Castelfranchi, C. (2007) · Cognition & Emotion · doi:10.1080/02699930600814735 · Cited by 181
Social comparison after success and failure: Biased search for information consistent with a self-serving conclusion
Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J. L., & LaPrelle, J. (1985) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/0022-1031(85)90015-0 · Cited by 199
Self-Enhancement: Is it Restricted to Individualistic Cultures?
Kurman, J. (2001) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/01461672012712013 · Cited by 188
In good company: The influence of peers on industry engagement by academic scientists
Tartari, V., Perkmann, M., & Salter, A. J. (2014) · Research Policy · doi:10.1016/j.respol.2014.02.003 · Cited by 179
Not so above average after all: When people believe they are worse than average and its implications for theories of bias in social comparison
Moore, D. A. (2006) · Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes · doi:10.1016/j.obhdp.2006.09.005 · Cited by 177
Social Support and the Study of Personal Relationships
Gottlieb, B. H. (1985) · Journal of Social and Personal Relationships · doi:10.1177/0265407585023007 · Cited by 177
Me, us and them: Political identification and the third‐person effect in the 1993 Australian federal election
Duck, J. M., Hogg, M. A., & Terry, D. J. (1995) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2420250206 · Cited by 175
Impact of newspaper crime reports on fear of crime: Multimethodological investigation.
Heath, L. (1984) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.47.2.263 · Cited by 174
New directions in social comparison research
Buunk, B. P., & Mussweiler, T. (2001) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.77 · Cited by 174
Low Self-Esteem: The Uphill Struggle for Self-Integrity
Spencer, S. J., Josephs, R. A., & Steele, C. M. (1993) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4684-8956-9_2 · Cited by 173
Glowing Praise and the Envious Gaze: Social Dilemmas Surrounding the Public Recognition of Achievement
Exline, J. J., Single, P. B., Lobel, M., & Geyer, A. L. (2004) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1207/s15324834basp2602 · Cited by 174
The social cost of depression: Investigating the impact of impaired social emotion regulation, social cognition, and interpersonal behavior on social functioning
Kupferberg, A., & Hasler, G. (2023) · Journal of Affective Disorders Reports · doi:10.1016/j.jadr.2023.100631 · Cited by 230
Among the Better Ones
Collins, R. L. (2000) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4615-4237-7_9 · Cited by 173
Intrapersonal and social comparison determinants of happiness: A range-frequency analysis.
Smith, R. H., Diener, E. F., & Wedell, D. H. (1989) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.56.3.317 · Cited by 172
The Influence of Unethical Peer Behavior on Observers’ Unethical Behavior: A Social Cognitive Perspective
O’Fallon, M. J., & Butterfield, K. D. (2011) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-011-1111-7 · Cited by 185
Scarcity's Enhancement of Desirability: The Role of Naive Economic Theories
Lynn, M. (1992) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1207/s15324834basp1301_6 · Cited by 171
Consensual Racism and Career Track: Some Implications of Social Dominance Theory
Sidanius, J., Felicia Pratto, B., Martin, M. T., & Stallworth, L. M. (1991) · Political Psychology · doi:10.2307/3791552 · Cited by 171
Outcome Controllability and Counterfactual Thinking
Roese, N. J., & Olson, J. M. (1995) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167295216008 · Cited by 170
Interpretation bias and depressive symptoms: The role of self-relevance
Wisco, B. E., & Nolen–Hoeksema, S. (2010) · Behaviour Research and Therapy · doi:10.1016/j.brat.2010.08.004 · Cited by 162
Does Race Matter?
Frisby, C. M. (2004) · Journal of Black Studies · doi:10.1177/0021934703258989 · Cited by 168

Authors: Wills, T. A.
Corresponding author: Wills, Thomas A.
ORCID: Wills, Thomas A.
Venue: Psychological Bulletin
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Published: 1981-09
Volume: 90
Issue: 2
Pages: 245-271
ISSN: 0033-2909 (ISSN-L)
1939-1455
DOI: 10.1037/0033-2909.90.2.245
OpenAlex: W2156796359
Semantic Scholar: 93e1ba7c88523e39e841218830a09828e97b5ffa
Cited by: 2,705
References: 97
Citations by year: 2026: 74 · 2025: 92 · 2024: 99 · 2023: 98 · 2022: 101 · 2021: 121 · 2020: 121 · 2019: 106 · 2018: 76 · 2017: 94 · 2016: 82 · 2015: 87 · 2014: 105 · 2013: 82 · 2012: 79
FWCI: 36.70
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Locations: Psychological Bulletin (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
Keywords: downward social comparison, self-enhancement, subjective well-being, negative affect

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review

Downward comparison principles in social psychology

Abstract

Overview

Integrity signals

Verification

Claims the paper makes

Claims other papers make about this one

Citations

Cites

Cited by

Related

Metadata

Record

About these checks