Huguet Pascal, Dumas Florence, Marsh Herbert, Wheeler Ladd, Seaton Marjorie, Nezlek John, Suls Jerry, Régner Isabelle
Department of Psychology, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France.
J Pers Soc Psychol. 2009 Jul;97(1):156-70. doi: 10.1037/a0015558.
It has been speculated that the big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE; the negative impact of highly selective academic settings on academic self-concept) is a consequence of invidious social comparisons experienced in higher ability schools. However, the direct role of such comparisons for the BFLPE has not heretofore been documented. The present study comprises the first evidence that the BFLPE (a) is eliminated after controlling for students' invidious comparisons with their class and (b) coexists with the assimilative and contrastive effects of upward social comparison choices on academic self-concept. These results increase understanding of the BFLPE and offer support for integrative approaches of social comparison (selective accessibility and interpretation comparison models) in a natural setting. They also lend support for the distinction between forced and deliberate social comparisons and the usefulness of distinguishing between absolute and relative comparison-level choice in self-assessment.
据推测，大鱼小池塘效应（BFLPE；高度选择性的学术环境对学术自我概念的负面影响）是在高能力学校中经历的恶意社会比较的结果。然而，迄今为止，这种比较对BFLPE的直接作用尚未得到记录。本研究首次证明，BFLPE（a）在控制学生与班级的恶意比较后消失，并且（b）与向上社会比较选择对学术自我概念的同化和对比效应共存。这些结果增进了对BFLPE的理解，并为自然环境中社会比较的综合方法（选择性可及性和解释性比较模型）提供了支持。它们还支持了被迫和有意的社会比较之间的区别，以及在自我评估中区分绝对和相对比较水平选择的有用性。
