Shifting Social Identities as a Strategy for Deflecting Threatening Social Comparisons

• Published in: Journal of personality and social psychology Vol. 79; no. 3; pp. 398 - 409
• Main Authors: Mussweiler, Thomas, Gabriel, Shira, Bodenhausen, Galen V
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Psychological Association 01-09-2000
• Subjects: Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Female; Females; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Human; Humans; Illinois; Judgment; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Self Concept; Self Esteem; Self Evaluation; Self-Preservation; Social attribution, perception and cognition; Social Comparison; Social Desirability; Social Dominance; Social Identification; Social Identity; Social Perception; Social psychology; Social Values; Threat; Undergraduate Students; Social comparison; Human; Affect affectivity; Social perception; Self evaluation; Strategy; Self esteem; Personality; Social identity
• ISSN: 0022-3514; 1939-1315
• DOI: 10.1037/0022-3514.79.3.398

Results of three studies suggest that the multifaceted nature of identity provides a strategic basis for reducing the threat involved in upward social comparisons. After performing worse than a comparison standard, people may strategically emphasize aspects of their identity that differentiate them from the standard, thereby making the standard less relevant for self-evaluation. On the basis of previous research showing that persons low in self-esteem are less likely to make effective use of self-protection strategies, we hypothesized that this strategy of deflecting the threat involved in upward comparison (i.e., decreasing perceived comparability by emphasizing an unshared social identity) would be used primarily by persons who are characteristically high in self-esteem. This pattern was confirmed in three studies. Moreover, use of the strategy was associated with relatively more positive affect following threatening upward comparisons.