A Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Social Media Exposure to Upward Comparison Targets on Self-Evaluations and Emotions
Open accessAbstract
Social media have become a pervasive part of contemporary culture and are an essential part of the daily lives of an increasing number of people. Its popularity has brought unlimited opportunities to compare oneself with other people. This meta-analysis combined and summarized the findings of previous experimental research, with the aim of generating causal conclusions regarding the effects of exposure to upward comparison targets on self-evaluations and emotions in a social media context. We identified 48 articles involving 7679 participants through a systematic search and entered 118 effect sizes into a multilevel, random-effects meta-analysis. Analyses revealed an overall negative effect of upward social comparison relative to downward comparison and controls on social media users’ self-evaluations and emotions (g = −0.24, p < .001). Specifically, there were significant negative effects of upward comparison on each outcome variable: body image (g = −0.31, p < .001), subjective well-being (g = −0.19, p < .001), mental health (g = −0.21, p < .001) and self-esteem (g = −0.21, p < .001). This meta-analysis indicates that contrast is the dominant response to upward comparison on social media, which results in negative self-evaluations and emotions.
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Previous evidence indicates that social comparisons on social networking sites negatively influence self-esteem.
“This finding is in line with previous evidence that social comparisons on social networking sites negatively influence self-esteem”
From The associations between social comparison on social media and young adults’ mental health (2025) · cites this paper as McComb et al., 2023
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Social Media Self-Effects on Adolescents’ Self-Esteem: A 100-Day Diary StudyPreprint
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The Anti-social Network: The Role of the Social Media Manosphere in Young Men’s Lives
Wilson, M. J., Fisher, K., & Seidler, Z. E. (2024) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-64053-7_6 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
An experimental study on the impact of social media images on users’ online social anxiety in China
Jia, Z. (2025) · Discover Psychology · doi:10.1007/s44202-025-00337-4 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
US State Policies Regarding Social Media: Do Policies Match the Evidence?
Thimm-Kaiser, M., & Keyes, K. M. (2025) · Milbank Quarterly · doi:10.1111/1468-0009.70021 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Yusainy, C., Fitria, I., Sarirah, T., Barlaman, M. H. A., Timothy, J. A., Effendi, M. G., Setiawati, Y., Silvana, N., Wicaksono, W., & Santosoputro, A. (2024) · The Journal of General Psychology · doi:10.1080/00221309.2024.2404399 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
“A recent meta-analysis specifically on experimental studies concludes that viewing upward comparison targets on social media has a significant impact on the viewers’ emotional states and self-evaluations (McComb et al., 2023).”
Weber, S., Sadler, M., & Mengelkamp, C. (2025) · Social Sciences · doi:10.3390/socsci14080450 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Xiong, S., Yi, X., Xiong, G., & Zhang, B. (2025) · Journal of Youth and Adolescence · doi:10.1007/s10964-025-02232-6 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
“This form of presentation fosters an overly optimistic informational environment, making viewers of social media more prone to upward social comparison (McComb et al., 2023).”
Patel, T. A., Perez, A., & Cougle, J. R. (2025) · Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking · doi:10.1177/21522715251371095 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“43 This study is one of the fi rst to closely examine overvalua-tion of appearance ’ s connection with SM, and with the use of a lab-based task measure as well as a self-report survey.”
Feng, W., Zhang, M., Bu, Y., & Wang, C. (2025) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-025-25327-3 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
“Social network addiction often exposes users to idealized and selectively curated social content, thereby intensifying upward comparisons and heightening comparison orientation 50 .”
Goldfield, G. S., Lopes, M. V., Mahboob, W., Perry, S., & Davis, C. G. (2026) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2026.121331 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Social Comparison, Social Media, and Consumer Well-Being
Cruz, R. E., Serin, N., Chan, S. S., & van Solt, M. (2024) · International series on consumer science · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-59144-0_13 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Measuring dynamic emotional experiences in response to media stimuli
Winkler, J. R., & Appel, M. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1436918 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Küchler, G., Borgdorf, K. S. A., Aguilar-Raab, C., & Wrzus, C. (2025) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/jopy.13016 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
“In general, upward comparisons are more frequent than down-ward comparisons on dimensions such as body image, attractiveness, and well-being (Gerber et al. 2018; McComb et al. 2023; Midgley et al. 2021).”
Berkout, O. V., & Flynn, M. K. (2024) · Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science · doi:10.1007/s41347-024-00411-z · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Upward social comparison on social media has been associated with lower subjective well-being, poorer mental health, and greater psychological distress (McComb et al., 2023; Verduyn et al., 2020; Wang et al., 2020).”
Interpersonal Goal Contagion Through Social Media Posts
Tobin, S. J., Crocker, J., & Jiang, T. (2025) · Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking · doi:10.1089/cyber.2024.0480 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“28,29 However, certain types of self-promoting posts could be viewed positively 30 and lead to professional bene-fi ts, 31 and under certain conditions, exposure to self-promoting content can increase positive affect and motivation (e.g., when an admired, higher-ranked person shares their relevant…”
Self-citationKnight, R., & Preston, C. (2025) · Journal of Social Media Research · doi:10.29329/jsomer.33 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Social comparison theory, which indicates that we compare ourselves to others as a form of self-exploration, suggests that media and social media may be especially ripe for comparisons, since we perceive other users as peers (McComb et al., 2023).”
Aubry, R., Quiamzade, A., & Meier, L. L. (2025) · Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking · doi:10.1089/cyber.2024.0565 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Moreover, although social comparisons on social media predominantly lead to contrastive rather than assimilative effects, thereby inducing threats to the self, 20 they can also induce assimilation processes promoting well-being.”
Yu, M., & Cingel, D. P. (2025) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs15060743 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“Second, results of recent meta-analysis research suggest that age is not related with the tendency of engaging in either ability-based assimilative or ability-based contrastive upward state social comparison on social media (McComb et al., 2023).”
InfluentialZhu, L., Omar, B., & Qi, F. (2025) · Computers in Human Behavior Reports · doi:10.1016/j.chbr.2025.100832 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
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Lei, Y., Hu, S., Sun, Y., & Zheng, L. (2026) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1825169 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
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Body image in the workplace: Assessing the impact on self-esteem and employee engagement
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Neural representations of self-beliefs and the self-concept
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“…con - nection and engagement, they are also related to different psychological risks, such as intensified social comparisons (Andrade et al., 2023 ; McComb et al., 2023) and cognitive overload (Li et al., 2024 ; Schmitt et al., 2021), and disen-gagement from real-world responsibilities (Bouffard…”
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“…a dual role: it provides compensatory outlet for seeking alternative reference groups or aspirational identities, yet simultaneously exacerbates feelings of disadvantage through exposure to curated, idealized representations that foster upward social comparisons (McComb, Vanman, & Tobin, 2023).”
Aljadani, A., Alnomsi, A. S., Alswaida, M. I., & Abouzed, M. A. (2025) · Cogent Psychology · doi:10.1080/23311908.2025.2596287 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“…are required to establish temporal relationships. in addition, platform heterogeneity is often overlooked. instagram’s curated content may fuel social comparison and anxiety, whereas Whatsapp’s utilitarian messaging may incur lower cognitive costs (aharony & Zion, 2019; Mccomb & Mills, 2023).”
Momentary fluctuations in body image dissatisfaction among women: The role of self-concept clarity
Tang, M. C. Y., Vartanian, L. R., & Pinkus, R. T. (2026) · Self and Identity · doi:10.1080/15298868.2026.2619136 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“…that comparison targets who embody societally-valued attractiveness ideals are particularly salient, as they serve as aspirational reference points for evaluating one’s own appearance and a benchmark that one might strive to achieve (McComb et al., 2023; Mills et al., 2002; Vartanian et al., 2025).”
Not all clicks are equal: digital dose, content, and user disposition in mental health
Gupta, L., Bharti, D., & Singhal, S. (2026) · Academia Mental Health and Well-Being · doi:10.20935/mhealthwellb8208 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
The relationship between social media use and social isolation in young adults: a systematic review
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“Closely related to this argument is the idea that unfavorable (i.e., upward) social comparison can reduce health outcomes by worsening relative deprivation because of those perceived to be better off (Aubry et al., 2024; Kim & Kim, 2023; McComb et al., 2023).”
Role of social media dependency and online reputation in instituting stress among social media users
Karunarathne, E. A. C. P., Wijesundara, W. M. T. H., Athukorala, A. D. M. P., & Chithrananda, K. P. S. P. (2025) · Asian Education and Development Studies · doi:10.1108/aeds-09-2024-0200 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Idols Within Reach: Measuring Perceptions of Media Role Models’ Attainability
Harff, D., Dekoninck, H., & Schmuck, D. (2025) · Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1177/10776990251336388 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
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“McComb, et al (2023) discussed a meta-analysis of the social comparison impact of social media exposure, including Facebook, Instagram, and WeChat causing negative effects on users' emotions and self-evaluation.”
BackgroundWang, Y., Liu, Y., Wang, H., & Li, R. (2025) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-025-07288-y · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“Individuals engaging in upward social comparison, comparing themselves to others they perceive as superior, often experience a range of negative emotions, such as anger, fear, anxiety, and jeal-ousy (Lewis, 2021; McCarthy & Morina, 2020; McComb et al., 2023; Villanueva-Moya et al., 2023).”
Rodríguez‐de‐Dios, I. (2025) · Lecture notes in educational technology · doi:10.1007/978-981-96-5658-5_79 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Beyond virtual proximity: loneliness in the world of social media
Fakhri, N., Rahmadiani, V., Irdianti, & Buchori, S. (2025) · Qualitative Research Reports in Communication · doi:10.1080/17459435.2025.2539115 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“Social comparison theory suggests that frequent exposure to carefully curated online presentations of others’ lives may contribute to feelings of inadequacy and social disconnection (Han, 2022; McComb et al., 2023).”
The Mediating Role of Social Media Usage in Mental Well-Being: A Gender Perspective
Uygurtaş, M., & Akdemir, N. (2025) · OPUS Toplum Araştırmaları Dergisi · doi:10.26466/opusjsr.1686931 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Boeckxstaens, I., Schokkenbroek, J. M., Noë, M., & Schreurs, L. (2025) · Social Science Computer Review · doi:10.1177/08944393251366234 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“The positively-biased and idealized self-presentations that are characteristic of social media often trigger upward contrastive social comparison processes (McComb et al., 2023), which can negatively impact well-being (Verduyn et al., 2020).”
Husain, W., Husain, M. A., Ijaz, F., Farrukh, J., Batool, F., Tahir, N., Trabelsi, K., Ammar, A., & Jahrami, H. (2025) · BMC Psychology · doi:10.1186/s40359-025-03208-8 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“Research further indicates that upward social comparisons in the romantic domain, such as observing peers in seemingly happy relationships, can exacerbate feelings of exclusion and lower self-esteem, reinforcing romantic loneliness [44].”
From intervention to prevention! Effects of peer progress information on user engagement
Yin, Q., Guo, C., & Yan, Z. (2025) · Internet Research · doi:10.1108/intr-05-2024-0817 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Rethinking Social Comparison Through Self-Cultivation: An East Asian Perspective
Chou, S. C.-M. (2025) · Journal of Humanistic Psychology · doi:10.1177/00221678251367792 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Photo editing on Instagram: Effects on body image, coping and well-being in young Spanish women
Rodríguez, D. A., & Abella, M. C. (2025) · Universitas Psychologica · doi:10.11144/javeriana.upsy24.peie · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“Second, the study's cross-sectional design precludes causal inferences (McComb et al., 2023).”
Li, Q., & Chen, J. (2025) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/01973533.2025.2598246 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“…(Butera & Darnon, 2017), high-competence actors as upward comparison targets can inherently represent a threat to observers’ self-worth (Collins, 1996; McComb et al., 2023), yet witnessing their unethical acts appears to create opportunities for moral contrast via downward comparison, often…”
Tadpatrikar, A., Sharma, M. K., & Murthy, P. (2025) · Indian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.4103/indianjpsychiatry_409_25 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Tall orders online: social media engagement is associated with height dissatisfaction
Hansson, A. M., Condello, S., Khamisi, A., & Talbot, D. (2026) · The Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/00224545.2025.2608305 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“This environment fosters internalization of unrealistic body ideals (Jarman et al., 2021) and frequent upward social comparisons (McComb et al., 2023), both of which have been linked to increased body dissatisfaction and associated mental health concerns (Fardouly & Vartanian, 2016; Vandenbosch et…”
Mapping the knowledge landscape of body image research: A bibliometric and visualized study
Ren, Y., Tian, X., Li, Z., Li, X., Zhao, B., Wang, Z., & Peng, C. (2026) · Body Image · doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2026.102039 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Díaz-Moreno, A., Bonilla, I., & Lusar, A. C. (2026) · Psychology Society & Education · doi:10.21071/pse.v18i1.18478 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“This, in turn, may lead to decreased mental health, self-esteem, and subjective well-being (McComb et al., 2023).”
Lao, C. H., Skandalakis, A., & Marshall, T. C. (2026) · Media Psychology · doi:10.1080/15213269.2026.2626701 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Digital age triggers: the role of social media evaluation in music performance anxiety
Ma, X., Lu, L., Luo, C., & Gao, Q. (2026) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1742379 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“In particular, McComb et al. (2023) demonstrated, through a meta-analytic review, that exposure to social media comparison systematically undermines self-evalua-tions and emotional well-being.”
Einstein, D. A., Marsh, S., Moshel, M. L., Sinani, T., & Burrell, T. (2026) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph23030364 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
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“Recent research suggests that social media environments create new forms of social comparison pressure that influence individuals’ psychological experiences (Arigo et al., 2024; McComb et al., 2023).”
InfluentialArandi, N. Z., & Qtait, F. (2026) · BDJ Open · doi:10.1038/s41405-026-00445-w · Cited by 1 · see citing works
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Zhou, A., Dai, Y.-L., Liu, Y., & Liu, J. (2026) · International Journal of Advertising · doi:10.1080/02650487.2026.2670869 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
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“According to Social Comparison Theory, these online social comparison experiences may lead to increasing negative affect and diminishing self-worth (McComb et al., 2023).”
Celik, S., Gracia, P., Gonzalez-Vila, P., & Tarantino, G. (2026) · Adolescent Research Review · doi:10.1007/s40894-026-00287-5 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“…prevalent in adolescents’ lives (Scott et al., 2024; Verduyn et al., 2022 ), offering a wide range of online activities (e.g., socializing, gaming, sharing out, and exposure to harmful content (Burnell et al., 2019; Fioravanti et al., 2021; Livingstone et al., 2017 ; McComb et al., 2023).”
Your pain, my gain: Schadenfreude as a driving mechanism of online “liking” behavior
Lunt, D. C., Lunt, L. D., Wood, A. D., & Highley, Z. C. (2026) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2026.107413 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Tølbøll, K. B. (2026) · Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review · doi:10.1007/s10567-026-00577-3 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“For these individuals, digital platforms like social media that promote self-surveillance, social comparisons and validation seeking can exacerbate anxiety and depression levels for at-risk youth, creating a negative spiral (Cataldo et al., 2022; McComb et al., 2023).”
A review of foreign research on the development of professional identity of students
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How time orientation matters for happiness: The nonmonotonic relations featured with a middle valley
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When I Hate to Follow You: Hate-Following, Envy, and Schadenfreude on Instagram
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“As concluded in a recent meta-analysis, social media posts provide opportunities for viewers to make more frequent and more extreme upward comparisons (McComb et al., 2023).”
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“Continuous exposure to idealised peers on social media may heighten feelings of inadequacy and exclusion (McComb et al. 2023), which, combined with mimetic rivalry, may drive some adolescents to self-harm as a way of managing emotional distress.”
Digital Communication in the Age of TikTok
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“…the content of others without engaging with them) can diminish well-being as it may lead to feeling that SNS use is a waste of time (Sagioglou & Greitemeyer, 2014), or damaging upward social comparisons (McComb et al., 2023), though this effect may critically depend on the content being monitored.”
Self-citationปจจยทมความสมพนธกบความวตกกงวลทางสงคมจากการใชเครอขายสงคมออนไลนของนกศกษาพยาบาล
ผ่องแผ้ว, ไ., คติชอบ, ณ., & สันประโคน, ป. (2025) · Thai Red Cross Nursing Journal · doi:10.64767/trcn.2025.272867
- Authors
- McComb, C. A., Vanman, E. J., & Tobin, S. J.
- Affiliations
- The University of Queensland (AU)
- Queensland University of Technology (AU)
- Corresponding author
- McComb, Carly A.
- Venue
- Media Psychology
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2023-02-23
- Volume
- 26
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 612-635
- ISSN
- 1521-3269 (ISSN-L)
- 1532-785X
- OpenAlex
- W4321788928
- Cited by
- 167
- References
- 66
- Citations by year
- 2026: 83 · 2025: 58 · 2024: 21 · 2023: 5
- FWCI
- 8.49
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Media Psychology (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- QUT ePrints (Queensland University of Technology) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- specific grant from funding agencies
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Body Image and Dysmorphia Studies
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Networks and Communications › Media and Digital Communication
- Keywords
- upward social comparison, social media exposure, self-assessment, emotions, body image, subjective well-being, mental health, self-esteem, downward social comparison, contrast effects
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