PSYC 230 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Social Comparison Theory, Stepfamily
16 Jan 2017
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Document Summary
The elementary school is the place where you somehow assess yourself and ability by comparing your performance and abilities with others. Erikson calls this stage; industry vs inferiority stage. An elementary school child knows whether he"s smart, or not. They can do that because they do social comparison. Because of this social comparison, this, is going to determine what their self-esteem is going to be. So, to maintain a positive high self-esteem, children usually do a downward social comparison. (comparing yourself with others that are less good than you, so that it makes you feel better) Friendship at elementary school level is very important; it is the time at which children start to build real friendships. Friends provide information about the world and other people, emotional support, help handle stress, teach others and how to manage and control their emotions. Friend"s teach how to communicate with others, foster intellectual growth, practice relationship skills, and teach you how to be loyal.
