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The social comparison process presents a potential source of instability in self-conception. In this study, job applicants casually encountered a stimulus person whose characteristics were either socially desirable or undesirable. Half the subjects in each of these conditions found the other was competing with them for the same position, and half did not. Preliminary assessments were also made of the subjects' level of self-consistency. The major dependent variable was self-esteem change. As predicted by comparison theory, the socially desirable stimulus person produced a significant decrease in self-esteem, while the undesirable other significantly enhanced subjects' self-estimates. Subjects low in self-consistency were most affected by the presence of the other, while extent of competition had no effect. It was also found that similarity between subject and stimulus person tended to enhance self-esteem, while dissimilarity tended to reduce it.
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Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
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European Journal of Social Psychology
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