“My friend is much more lucky & talented than I am” 👉 Upward social comparison
“At least I did not get big debt like that guy” 👉 Downward social comparison
Both types can have negative or positive effects.
But we do it for the same purpose: To find out how good or bad we are doing in certain aspects
Especially when there is no objective measure for self-evaluation.
It’s our nature to make comparisons like these
But Social Media has made it worse
Especially with passive scrolling on the news feed.
We see others’ fancy photos & updates of what they’ve been experiencing & special achievements, available 24/7
Which encourages us to (constantly) compare ourselves to people seemingly better than we are & most likely will feel envy
We get lost in THEIR idealized life
Forget to enjoy our own life, damage our self-esteem & confidence
Which, in a long time, results in depression
