People sometimes make downward social comparisons ― comparing themselves to inferior or worse-off others ― to feel better about themselves. This is self-enhancement at work. But what happens when the only available comparison target we have is superior or better off than we are? Can self-enhancement motives still be served in such situations? Yes, they can, as captured by the self-evaluation maintenance model. According to this theory, we shift between two processes ― reflection and comparison ― in a way that lets us maintain favorable self-views. In areas that are not especially relevant to our self-definition, we engage in reflection, whereby we flatter ourselves by association with others’ accomplishments. Suppose you care very little about your own athletic skills, but when your friend scores the winning goal during a critical soccer match, you beam with pride, experience a boost to your self-esteem, and take delight in her victory celebrations as if, by association, it were your victory too.
* flatter: 치켜세우다, 아첨하다