Many social psychologists assert that much of our sense of self arises from our interactions with or observations of others: in effect, that the self is social. How does Leon Festinger's social comparison theory fit this conceptualization self?

What will be an ideal response?

Answer: Social comparison theory posits that we are motivated to evaluate ourselves, our attitudes, and our abilities. Sometimes the nonsocial environment doesn't provide enough information (i.e., objective criteria) to afford these evaluations. When this happens, we often turn to others to evaluate our own abilities; we engage in social comparison. We are most likely to compare ourselves to others when there are no objective standards and when we are unsure of some self-aspects. We engage in upward social comparison when we want to be accurate, and in downward social comparison when we want to feel good about ourselves.