ABSTRACT

There is little question that people spend a good deal of time evaluating themselves and others. These self-and other-evaluations are often closely intertwined, because information about oneself can be gained through social comparison. A large body of evidence indicates that people assess their opinions, abilities, and emotions by comparing their own and others' characteristics (e.g., Festinger, 1954; Levine, 1983; Schachter, 1959; Suls & Miller, 1977). People also use social comparison to evaluate their outcomes (e.g., Austin, 1977; Cook, Crosby, & Hennigan, 1977; Walster, Walster, & Berscheid, 1978). Previous work on outcome evaluations has often neglected the fact that these judgments occur in group contexts. Recent analyses suggest, however, that group membership can play an important role in outcome comparisons (e.g., Crosby, 1984; deCarufel, 1981; Deutsch, 1974, 1981; Greenberg, 1982; Jasso, 1983; Leventhal, 1979; Levine & Moreland, in press).