Social comparisons at work as related to a cooperative social climate and to individual differences in social comparison orientation

This study examined the frequency of social comparisons in a work setting, and the feelings that these comparisons evoked. These processes were related to individual differences in social comparison orientation, and to the perception of a cooperative social climate at work. The participants were 216 physicians from various health centers in the Community of Valencia in Spain. In general, upward comparisons occurred more often, and elicited more positive and less negative affect than downward comparisons. Those high in social comparison orientation reported relatively more upward as well as downward comparisons, more positive affect after downward comparisons, and more negative affect after …