Understanding 'Social Comparison' that Often Occurs in Everyday Life

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Have you ever thought, "Why are they so successful?" or "Why does their life seem so much easier than mine?" If so, you have experienced the habit of comparing yourself to others. This is called social comparison. This concept, first proposed by Leon Festinger (1954), explains how humans evaluate their abilities, achievements, and even their self-worth based on the standards of others.

Social comparison is how people evaluate themselves by comparing themselves to others. However, this comparison can be done in two ways. First, comparing ourselves to people who are better than us (upward comparison) can encourage our personal development, but if done excessively, it can lead to feelings of inferiority and dissatisfaction with ourselves. Second, comparing ourselves to people who are considered to be in a worse situation than us (downward comparison) in some cases, make us more grateful, but if done in the wrong way, it can make us appear arrogant.

In today's social media era, everyone can easily see the "perfect" lives of others, triggering stronger feelings of comparison. In reality, what we see on social media is usually only the best part of someone's life, not the whole picture.

So, how can we avoid the negative effects of social comparison? There are several ways to do so, namely:

1. Remember that everyone's life journey is different.

2. Not everyone starts from the same point, so the results cannot be the same.

3. Focus on your own growth and learn from others without feeling like you have to be like them.

4. Use comparisons as motivation, not as a measure of self-worth.

5. Stop using social media if you start to feel anxious.

Because social comparison is a natural part of human behavior, it cannot be completely avoided. However, how we deal with such comparisons determines whether they have a positive or negative impact.

Therefore, it is very important to realize that everyone has their own pace. Life is not a race to see who can achieve success the fastest. It is okay to compare yourself to others, as long as the goal is to learn and become the best version of yourself, not to blame yourself for not being as "great" as others.

Reference:

Festinger, L. (1954). A theory of social comparison processes. Human Relations, 7(2), 117–140.