Comparisons in everyday life: Effects on academic self-concepts

Students can compare their achievements in one domain with those of their peers (social comparison), with their own achievements over time (temporal comparison), with their achievements in other domains (dimensional comparison), or with a factual criterion (criterial comparison). The present research aimed to gain a deeper understanding of multiple comparison processes in students’ everyday life. In Study 1, a total of N = 130 university students (Study 1), and in Study 2, a total of N = 226 high school students (Study 2) participated. A diary approach was used to examine the spontaneous occurrence of students’ everyday social, temporal, dimensional and criterial comparisons. Participants noted all comparisons they made concerning university/school over one week, as well as their antecedents and the consequences of these comparisons on their academic self-concepts. All four comparison types were shown to be prevalent in daily life and to affect change in students’ self-concepts. Downward comparisons mostly increased, and upward comparisons mostly decreased academic self-concept. Social comparisons were the most common comparison type (social > temporal > dimensional > criterial) in both samples. Moreover, self-evaluation was the most important motivational trigger in both samples. For university students, social interactions were the most common situational trigger for comparisons, whereas for high school students, performance feedback triggered comparisons more frequently. The results expand our understanding of academic self-concept development in everyday lives and contribute to the development of a comprehensive theory of comparison processes in academic contexts. • Two diary studies including social, temporal, dimensional and criterial comparisons. • First diary studies analyzing four comparison types at once in educational contexts. • Spontaneous comparative thoughts in everyday university and high school life. • Social comparisons were the most common comparison type. • State self-concepts decreased after upward, increased after downward comparisons.