Social Comparison Information Research Articles

Antecedents of daily disposal routines in the Gaza Strip refugee camps

A primary cause of environmental pollution is a lack of sound solid waste management and people's disposal behavior. Yet, driving factors of consumers' daily disposal behavior of household waste are still poorly understood. We apply the Theory of Planned Behavior in a quantitative study with 323 respondents living in refugee camps in the Gaza Strip. The objective of this study is to identify relevant determinants highlighting factors affecting people's daily disposal routines. Findings reveal that internal locus of control is the strongest predictor of the daily disposal routines. Spirituality and religious coping with waste have the second strongest positive effect on daily disposal routines that can be utilized for triggering behavioral changes. Similarly, frustration has a significant effect on daily disposal routines, although it is considered to be a maladaptive consequence due to the lack of prospective amendment of the practices. Confirming the relevance of role model behavior in the immediate social environment, attention to social comparison information has a significant positive effect. This paper provides practical implications for researchers and policymakers on solid waste management in the Gaza Strip and similar developing countries.

Consumer personality factors and iPhone consumption in China

AbstractThe iPhone is an iconic brand in China. In this article, we examine the impact of various personality factors, namely attention to social comparison information, need for uniqueness and quality consciousness, on purchase intentions for the iPhone among a sample of iPhone owners as well as non‐iPhone owners. We find that intention to purchase an iPhone in China is driven by personality factors of attention to social comparison, the need for uniqueness along with the decision‐style of quality consciousness. Our model shows intent explains iPhone ownership quite well, especially when income is included in the model.

사회비교 정보를 제공하는 대시보드에 대한 학습자 인식 탐색

사회비교 정보를 제공하는 대시보드에 대한 학습자 인식 탐색

“Feeling the waste” evidence from consumers’ living in Gaza Strip camps

PurposeThis paper aims to quantify the impact of antecedents (frustration, locus of control, spirituality, and religion and attention to social-comparison information) on the intensity of emotional outcomes of consumers’ disposal behaviour.Design/methodology/approachA structural equation model fitted with PLS was used to evaluate data obtained from 323 self-administered questionnaires filled out in a stratified random sample of respondents living in Gaza Strip camps.FindingsSpirituality and religion, and attention to social-comparison information have the highest impacts on emotional outcomes related to consumer disposal behaviour.Research limitations/implicationsSpirituality and religion are seldom considered in previous consumer research, but they turn out to have high relevance for disposal-related emotions.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study investigating disposal-related emotions. Moreover, it is also the first study combining the impact of frustration, locus of control, perceived self-efficacy, spirituality and religion and attention to social-comparison information on emotional outcomes related to consumers’ disposal behaviour.

Supplemental Material for Social Comparison Information, Performance Expectancy, and Performance Goal Adoption

Supplemental Material for Social Comparison Information, Performance Expectancy, and Performance Goal Adoption

Self-Evaluation Bias and Social Comparison Motives: A Field Experiment on Social Aspirations

Based on a field experiment at Singapore hawker centres, I examined the effect of social comparison information on levels of social aspirations. I built my theoretical argument by integrating self- evaluation bias into the process of forming aspiration levels under the influence of social comparison information. I argue that social comparison information triggers a self-improvement motive for managers underestimating their relative performance, and this motive leads to higher social aspiration levels. However, if managers display overconfident self-evaluations, social comparison information negatively affects social aspirations for them as they are prone to self-enhancement motive. I test my hypothesis in a field experiment setting. I recruited food stall managers from hawker centres in Singapore and randomize them into treatment and control, so I can empirically show the existence of self-evaluation bias held by real business managers and gauge the causal effect of social comparison information on social aspiration levels. The empirical findings support my hypothesis.

Self-Evaluation Strategies in College Women Trying to Lose Weight: The Relative Use of Objective and Social Comparison Information.

We examined patterns of self-evaluative information use in a sample of college women who were trying to lose weight (N = 306). Participants described their weight loss experiences and answered questions about their self-evaluative activity via an online survey. The analysis strategy examined the relative use of four types of self-evaluative information (objective, upward social comparison, lateral social comparison, and downward social comparison) to meet three basic self-evaluative motives (accurate self-assessment, self-enhancement, and self-improvement). We also examined the role that dissatisfaction, uncertainty, importance, and self-esteem played in the relative use of information and the relationship of these factors on weight loss success. Our findings support previous research showing the primacy of accurate and self-improvement motives in the domain of weight loss and the usefulness of lateral social comparison information for meeting all three motives. Women evaluating their weight reported using upward social comparison information most often, followed by objective information. Lateral and upward social comparison information were rated as more useful than downward social comparison information for meeting accuracy and self-improvement motives. Both lateral and downward social comparison information were reported as especially useful for self-enhancement, with upward social comparison information rated as least useful. Our study utilized an integrative approach for understanding self-evaluative processes in the area of college women’s weight loss. We found general support for our hypotheses regarding well-documented patterns of social comparison information usefulness for meeting three self-evaluative motives. Our data also support earlier research arguing that it is important to view information use in the context of multiple self-evaluative motives.

Social Comparison Features in Physical Activity Promotion Apps: Scoping Meta-Review.

BackgroundSmartphone apps promoting physical activity (PA) are abundant, but few produce substantial and sustained behavior change. Although many PA apps purport to induce users to compare themselves with others (by invoking social comparison processes), improvements in PA and other health behaviors are inconsistent. Existing literature suggests that social comparison may motivate PA for some people under some circumstances. However, 2 aspects of work that apply social comparison theory to PA apps remain unclear: (1) how comparison processes have been operationalized or harnessed in existing PA apps and (2) whether incorporating sources of variability in response to comparison have been used to tailor comparison features of apps, which could improve their effectiveness for promoting PA.ObjectiveThe aim of this meta-review was to summarize existing systematic, quantitative, and narrative reviews of behavior change techniques in PA apps, with an emphasis on social comparison features, to examine how social comparison is operationalized and implemented.MethodsWe searched PubMed, Web of Science, and PsycINFO for reviews of PA smartphone apps. Of the 3743 initial articles returned, 26 reviews met the inclusion criteria. Two independent raters extracted the data from these reviews, including the definition of social comparison used to categorize app features, the percentage of apps categorized as inducing comparison, specific features intended to induce comparison, and any mention of tailoring comparison features. For reference, these data were also extracted for related processes (such as behavioral modeling, norm referencing, and social networking).ResultsOf the included review articles, 31% (8/26) categorized app features as prompting social comparison. The majority of these employed Abraham and Michie’s earliest definition of comparison, which differs from versions in later iterations of the same taxonomy. Very few reviews specified what dimension users were expected to compare (eg, steps, physical fitness) or which features of the apps were used to induce comparison (eg, leaderboards, message boards). No review referenced tailoring of comparison features. In contrast, 54% (14/26) reviews categorized features for prompting behavioral modeling and 31% (8/26) referenced tailoring app features for users’ personal goals or preferences.ConclusionsThe heterogeneity across reviews of PA apps and the absence of relevant information (eg, about dimensions or features relevant for comparison) create confusion about how to best harness social comparison to increase PA and its effectiveness in future research. No evidence was found that important findings from the broader social comparison literature (eg, that people have differing preferences for and responses to social comparison information) have been incorporated in the design of existing PA apps. Greater integration of the mobile health (mHealth) and social comparison literatures may improve the effectiveness of PA apps, thereby increasing the public health impact of these mHealth tools.International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)RR2-https://osf.io/nh4td/

Techniques to Motivate Learner Improvement in Game-Based Assessment

Learner motivation to self-improve is a crucial effectiveness factor in all modes and settings of learning. Game-based learning was long used for attracting and maintaining students’ interest especially in small ages, deploying means such as scoring, timing, scores of peers (i.e., hall of fame), etc. These techniques can provide recognition for high-scoring players, while also developing a sense of safe “distance” in the impersonal electronic environment for low-scoring players. In addition, constructive feedback on mistakes a player makes can contribute to avoiding similar mistakes in the future, thus achieving better performance in the game, while constructing valuable new knowledge when a knowledge gap is detected. This paper investigates an integrated approach to designing, implementing, and using an adaptive game for assessing and gradually improving multiplication skills. Student motivation is fostered by incorporating the Open Learner Model approach, which exposes part of the underlying user model to the students in a graphically simplified manner that is easily perceivable and offers a clear picture of student performance. In addition, the Open Learner Model is expanded with visualizations of social comparison information, where students can access the progress of anonymous peers and summative class scores for improving self-reflection and fostering self-regulated learning. This paper also presents the feedback received by the preliminary testing of the game and discusses the effect of assessing multiplication skills of primary school pupils using the adaptive game-based approach on increasing pupil motivation to self-improve.

Income inequality and risk taking: the impact of social comparison information

In contrast to the assumptions of standard economic theory, recent experimental evidence shows that the income of peers has a systematic impact on observed degrees of risk aversion. This paper reports the findings of two experiments examining the impact of income inequality on risk preferences and whether the knowledge of inequality mediates the decisions. In Experiment 1, participants who were recruited for a real-effort task were paid either a low wage or a high wage. Half of the participants were aware of the income inequality, while the other half were not. After completing their task, they were invited to invest a part of their salary in a risky asset. In Experiment 2, we replicated the same experiment in the laboratory with windfall endowments to test the consistency of results in the laboratory settings. The results of the first experiment show that high-wage subjects take higher risks than low-wage participants do if they are aware of the inequality in wages. This finding supports the idea that income comparisons shape risky decisions. In Experiment 2, on the other hand, we did not observe any significant differences in decisions. This may suggest that the income comparison is sensitive to house-money effect.

Social Comparison Information, Ethnocentrism, National Identity Associated with Purchase Intention in China

Social Comparison Information, Ethnocentrism, National Identity Associated with Purchase Intention in China

How do I compare thee? An evidence-based approach to the presentation of class comparison information to students using Dashboard

ABSTRACTLearning Dashboards display analytics pertaining to student performance and attainment, often alongside scores for the class cohort average. Little research has considered the effects of this social comparison information on students’ well-being, motivation, and engagement. The current study presented participants with hypothetical data that simulated a student performing above, below, or at the class average before measuring self-esteem, persistence on an impossible anagram task, and willingness to engage with study support services. Our results showed that where upward social comparisons were induced (exposure to Dashboard data displaying engagement and attainment below the class average), students reported lower self-esteem than participants presented with above average vignette data. Interestingly, this effect was not moderated by the grade profile of students and no effects on persistence or willingness to engage with study support were observed. We conclude that upward social comparisons in Dashboard data can have negative consequences for students’ self-esteem.

Subconscious performance goals: Investigating the moderating effect of negative goal-discrepancy feedback

ABSTRACTBuilding on theories of conscious goals and feedback, we investigated the moderating effect of negative feedback on the relation between subconscious goals and performance. In two lab experiments, we manipulated subconscious performance goals and negative feedback about personal performance as well as social comparison information. In Study 1 (n = 80), subconscious goals positively influenced performance in an attention and concentration task when participants had received no feedback and negatively when participants had been confronted with negative performance feedback. In Study 2 (n = 90), additional comparison feedback indicating a higher performance of others led to higher performance of participants with versus without subconscious performance goals. The moderating effect of feedback was visible in self-efficacy, and we found partial support for its mediating role.

Social Comparisons and Need Fulfillment: Interpreting Video Game Enjoyment in the Context of Leaderboards

This study examines how social comparison information provided by video game leaderboards may influence players’ retrospective judgments of autonomy, competence, and relatedness need fulfillment. Participants played a video game and were randomly assigned to receive no postgame feedback or were shown a leaderboard that placed them in the top or bottom quartile of players. Results indicate downward social comparisons increase enjoyment by increasing competence and relatedness perceptions. However, upward comparisons did not have an opposite effect, nor did either type of social comparison influence players’ autonomy perceptions. Implications for applying Self-Determination Theory to video game enjoyment in the context of social comparison feedback is discussed.

‘Consuming Good’ on Social Media: What Can Conspicuous Virtue Signalling on Facebook Tell Us About Prosocial and Unethical Intentions?

Mentioning products or brands on Facebook enables individuals to display an ideal self to others through a form of virtual conspicuous consumption. Drawing on conspicuous donation behaviour literature, we investigate ‘conspicuous virtue signalling’ (CVS), as conspicuous consumption on Facebook. CVS occurs when an individual mentions a charity on their Facebook profile. We investigate need for uniqueness (NFU) and attention to social comparison information (ATSCI) as antecedents of two types of CVS–self-oriented (to gain intrinsic benefits) and other-oriented (to impress others). We also explore the relationship between CVS and self-esteem, and offline prosocial (donation to the charity) and unethical (counterfeit purchase) behaviour intentions. Data from two studies, a college survey (N = 234) and an adult survey via MTurk (N = 296), were analysed using structural equation modelling. Results indicate that NFU predicts both forms of CVS, while ATSCI influences both forms of CVS for adults and other-oriented CVS for students. Self-esteem is enhanced by self-oriented CVS. Self-oriented CVS predicts donation intention whereas other-oriented CVS significantly reduces donation intention for both samples. Furthermore, a significant relationship between CVS and purchase intention of counterfeit luxury goods is revealed. Findings provide insights into conspicuous virtue signalling and the relationship between CVS on Facebook and offline behavioural intentions.

Too Good to Be True? Boundary Conditions to the Use of Downward Social Comparisons in Service Recovery

Evidence shows that downward social comparisons (DSCs), messages delivered by frontline employees describing how service experiences turned out even worse for others, can reduce customers’ anger following a service failure. This study contributes to the literature on DSCs and service recovery by highlighting pitfalls associated with the use of these messages in service recovery and showing the conditions necessary for their effectiveness. Building on persuasion knowledge theory, we show that customers draw manipulative inferences about DSCs because of the perceived bias associated with the source of the message and the implicit derogation of a competitor that DSCs entail. To reduce inferences of manipulative intentions, frontline employees should both accompany DSC messages with intense apologies and use self-derogation to reduce the perception that they are criticizing another firm. Past claims on the generalized effectiveness of DSCs need to be revised. Managers should craft social comparison messages carefully to avoid negative reactions from customers. Our research indicates that once adapted to address these concerns, DSCs can be an effective recovery strategy among individuals with a strong need for social comparison information.

How exhausting!? Social network ties, structural position and emotional exhaustion

We draw on social influence in organizations (social learning, social comparison, and social information processing) to argue that employees will report similar levels of emotional exhaustion to th...

Why and when do consumers perform green behaviors? An examination of regulatory focus and ethical ideology

This research builds upon Hunt and Vitell's ethical decision-making model to examine consumers' engagement in green behaviors. Using survey data collected from Hong Kong and the United States and with structural equation modelling and bootstrap analyses, it shows that consumers' prevention focus and promotion focus positively affect their ethical idealism (βHK,US = 0.29, 0.19) and relativism (βHK,US = 0.15, 0.21), respectively. Furthermore, idealism positively influences consumers' corresponding ethical judgments (βHK,US = 0.18, 0.31) and decisions, and this influence is higher when the focal green behavior is high in moral intensity (βHK,US = 0.13, 0.12). Contrarily, ethical relativism has a negative impact on the same judgments (βHK,US = −0.11, −0.10) and decisions, and this impact is stronger when consumers' attention to social comparison information is low (βHK,US = 0.10, 0.11). This research contributes to the literature on green behaviors, regulatory focus and consumer ethics, and offers practical insights into promoting green behaviors among consumers.

Teacher judgment accuracy regarding students' self-concepts: Affected by social and dimensional comparisons?

Research on teacher judgment accuracy is connected with the Internal/External frame of reference model. Social and dimensional comparisons between achievements are central to the formation of students' mathematical and verbal self-concepts. Inferring self-concepts, teachers often ignore dimensional comparisons. Two studies tested whether information about students' achievements in two subjects can help teachers to comprehend students' social and dimensional comparisons, and to judge students' mathematics and German self-concepts more accurately. In Study 1 (N = 35 teachers, N = 578 students), informed mathematics teachers judged mathematics self-concepts more accurately and showed stronger social comparison effects. Neither informed nor uninformed teachers showed contrastive dimensional comparisons. Study 2 (N = 47, N = 746 students) replicated the central results of Study 1 for German teachers. Our results speak against contrastive dimensional comparisons in teachers' self-concept inferences. Yet, information about achievements can improve judgment accuracy through triggering stronger use of social comparison information.

Combining risk communication strategies to simultaneously convey the risks of four diseases associated with physical inactivity to socio-demographically diverse populations.

A single risk factor can increase the risk of developing multiple diseases, but most risk communication research has been conducted in the context of a single disease. We explored which combination of three recommended risk communication strategies is most effective in simultaneously conveying risk estimates of four diseases associated with physical inactivity: colon cancer, stroke, diabetes, and heart disease. Participants (N=1161, 50% no college experience, 50% racial/ethnic minority) were shown hypothetical risk estimates for each of the four diseases. All four diseases were placed at varying heights on 1 of 12 vertical bar charts (i.e., "risk ladders") to indicate their respective probabilities. The risk ladders varied in a 2 (risk reduction information: present/absent)×2 (numerical format: words/words and numbers)×3 (social comparison information: none/somewhat higher than average/much higher than average) full factorial design. Participants were randomly assigned to view one of the risk ladders and then completed a questionnaire assessing message comprehension, message acceptance, physical activity-related risk and efficacy beliefs, and physical activity intentions. Higher message acceptance was found among (1) people who received risk reduction information versus those who did not (p=.01), and (2) people who did not receive social comparison information versus those told that they were at higher than average risk (p=.03). Further, absolute cognitive perceived risk of developing "any of the diseases shown in the picture" was higher among people who did not receive social comparison information (p=.03). No other main effects and only very few interactions with demographic variables were found. Combining recommended risk communication strategies did not improve or impair key cognitive or affective precursors of health behavior change. It might not be necessary to provide people with extensive information when communicating risk estimates of multiple diseases.