When individuals dislike exposure to an actively coping role model: mood change as related to depression and social comparison orientation

Abstract

Abstract A total of 122 individuals, including those clinically depressed and nondepressed, were exposed to a description of a target who overcame his or her depression either through active coping (high effort), or seemingly by itself (low effort). Participants first completed the Beck Depression Inventory and the Iowa–Netherlands Comparison Orientation Measure. As predicted, among the nondepressed, with increasing levels of social comparison orientation, a high effort target evoked a relatively more positive mood change, and a low‐effort target a relatively more negative one. In contrast, among the depressed, with increasing levels of social comparison orientation, a low‐effort target evoked a relatively more positive mood change, and a high‐effort target a relatively more negative one. The implications are that exposure to active role models may worsen a depression, and that social comparison orientation may have clinical implications. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.