A Temporal Perspective on Social Comparisons in Organizations

Individuals evaluate their social standing through comparisons with others. These social comparisons affect individuals’ thoughts, feelings, and behavior at the workplace. This dissertation aims to advance our knowledge of the effects of these comparisons by taking a temporal perspective on the social comparison process. Contrary to previous research that looked at social comparisons as a single snapshot in time, this dissertation acknowledges the dynamic nature of social comparisons, in particular, that individuals’ standing may change over time. In three chapters, this dissertation examines how considerations of future status are derived from past relative trajectories and lead to positive and negative interpersonal as well the role of individuals’ goal orientation in their preferences for different temporal and static comparisons.