Who compares and despairs? The effect of social comparison orientation on social media use and its outcomes

a r t i c l e i n f o People vary in their tendencies to compare themselves to others, an individual difference variable called social comparison orientation (SCO). Social networking sites provide information about others that can be used for social comparison. The goal of the present set of studies was to explore the relationship between SCO, Facebook use, and negative psychological outcomes. Studies 1a and 1b used correlational approaches and showed that participants high (vs. low) in SCO exhibited heavier Facebook use. Study 2 used an experimental approach and revealed that participants high in SCO had poorer self-perceptions, lower self-esteem, and more negative affect balance than their low-SCO counterparts after engaging in brief social comparisons on Facebook. SCO did not have as strong or consistent effects for participants engaging in control tasks. Results are discussed in the context of extant literature and the impact of social media use on well-being. In their daily interactions, people are afforded many opportunities to learn about others' opinions, abilities, and lives. Such social comparative information can be useful for a multitude of purposes, including self-Importantly, people differ in their tendencies to engage in social comparison and in the psychological consequences incurred. Social comparison orientation (SCO) is a trait that reflects these individual differences (Gibbons & Buunk, 1999). Individuals high in SCO have a chronic sensitivity to and awareness of others, and experience more uncertainty and instability regarding their self-concepts (Buunk & Gibbons, 2006; Gibbons & Buunk, 1999). For the current research, we suggest that social media offers a novel medium in which social comparison can take place—and that people high in SCO might be more drawn to social media and more affected by the comparisons made therein. 1.1. Social media and social comparison opportunities Social media use has become ubiquitous in many societies, with popular social network sites (SNSs) such as Facebook.com having 1.4 billion active users worldwide (Facebook, 2015). SNSs not only allow users to maintain friendships, form new relationships, and connect with others allow people to construct their own personal profiles and present a rich set of information about themselves (e.g. the rich information we can learn about others and the expansive network of people from which we can learn it (Acar, 2008), SNSs offer up an ideal platform for social comparison to take place. Indeed, it appears that people are quite interested in learning about others on SNSs, …