Childhood cancer has obvious impacts on the children themselves, but also has impacts on their families and siblings. While studies have been conducted on the impacts of cancer on children and their parents, there has been limited consideration of the impacts of cancer on healthy siblings. Some studies have suggested that siblings of children with cancer are the most emotionally disregarded and distressed of all family members as a result of their sibling having cancer. Exposure to stress has a negative impact on the immune system and places siblings at risk for health problems. Thus, finding mechanisms to ameliorate stress are critical. Early intervention and treatment may serve as protective factors against risky behavior and lead to more normative child development and well-being. One method of improving the psychosocial adjustment of siblings of children with cancer has been through interventions such as camp experiences that include opportunities for campers to experience social support. There is a need to better understand the efficacy of intervention programs designed to reduce stress across a variety of settings. The focus of this study was if campers experience social support (emotional, informational, and instrumental) at a three and one-half day residential camp, and the elements of camp campers' identified as leading to social support. Participant observations of camp and semi-structured interviews with selected campers were used to help gain insights concerning the impact of the camp experience on siblings of children with cancer. Coding of responses was undertaken, which led to the identification of themes and subthemes. Findings provided a narrative description of how campers perceived social support. In addition, social comparison was identified as a critical mechanism for meeting camper's biological, physiological and behavioral needs. Overarching perceptions of campers were that people at camp were nice and staff was instrumental in facilitating universality and a cycle of reciprocity. Implications of this study suggest intentionally designed camps have the ability to impact a broad range of attitudes and behaviors. The study also supports theory of how structures and processes of social relationships work in relation to good health; and can be applied to a camp setting.

Social networking and social media technologies have greatly changed the way information is created and transmitted. Social media has made content contribution an efficient approach for individual brand building. With abundant user generated content and social networks, content consumers are constantly subject to social influence. Such social influence can be further utilized to encourage pro-social behavior. Chapter 1 examines the incentives for content contribution in social media. We propose that exposure and reputation are the major incentives for contributors. Besides, as more and more social media websites offer advertising-revenue sharing with some of their contributors, shared revenue provides an extra incentive for contributors who have joined revenue-sharing programs. We develop a dynamic structural model to identify a contributor's underlying utility function from observed contribution behavior. We recognize the dynamic nature of the content-contribution decision--that contributors are forward-looking, anticipating how their decisions impact future rewards. Using data collected from YouTube, we show that content contribution is driven by a contributor's desire for exposure, revenue sharing, and reputation and that the contributor makes decisions dynamically. Chapter 2 examines how social influence impact individuals' content consumption decisions in social network. Specifically, we consider social learning and network effects as two important mechanisms of social influence, in the context of YouTube. Rather than combining both social learning and network effects under the umbrella of social contagion or peer influence, we develop a theoretical model and empirically identify social learning and network effects separately. Using a unique data set from YouTube, we find that both mechanisms have statistically and economically significant effects on video views, and which mechanism dominates depends on the specific video type. Chapter 3 studies incentive mechanism to improve users' pro-social behavior based on social comparison. In particular, we aim to motivate organizations to improve Internet security. We propose an approach to increase the incentives for addressing security problems through reputation concern and social comparison. Specifically, we process existing security vulnerability data, derive explicit relative security performance information, and disclose the information as feedback to organizations and the public. To test our approach, we conducted a field quasi-experiment for outgoing spam for 1,718 autonomous systems in eight countries. We found that the treatment group subject to information disclosure reduced outgoing spam approximately by 16%. Our results suggest that social information and social comparison can be effectively leveraged to encourage desirable behavior. / text

本研究旨在了解台北地區高中職學生社會比較行為之現況，並探討影響社會比較行為之相關因素；其次，探討社會比較行為與創意態度及學習行為之關係。 本研究之樣本為台北地區公、私立高中、高職學校一至三年級學生，有效樣本共計565人（男生265人，女生300人）。所採用的研究工具包括「社會比較動機量表」、「社會比較內容量表」、「社會比較對象量表」、「知覺教師教與學導向量表」、「創意態度量表」、「成就目標量表」、「學生學習偏好量表」及「激勵學習策略量表」等八種量表。研究中所使用的統計方法包括：皮爾森積差相關、卡方考驗、區別分析、單因子變異數分析及典型相關。 本研究之研究結果如下： 一、　高中職學生社會比較行為現況方面： 台北地區高中職學生，其較常使用自我評鑑與學習、自我改進及結盟等比較動機，同時喜歡針對情緒智力相關事物與同學比較。在社會比較方式，高中職學生不分年籍、性別、學校類別，在各項能力的比較上皆傾向使用平行比較；在假想情境中的比較則是傾向使用向上比較。 二、　性別、教師的教學結構與社會比較之關係 （一）男、女高中職學生社會比較行為之差異 不同性別的高中職學生，男學生在部分的社會比較動機（包括：自我破壞、自我顯揚）及內容（包括：外表印象、成績表現）的使用意願上，都顯著比女學生來得高。在社會比較方式上，則沒有明顯的性別差異，除了在個性比較方面，女學生比男學生較多人選擇作向下比較。 （二）教師的教學結構與社會比較行為之關係 教師不同的教學結構與社會比較動機及內容皆呈顯著之正相關，在比較動機方面，當學生知覺教師採用學習導向的教學結構時，會增進其使用自我評鑑與學習及利他主義等比較動機，但是當其知覺到是表現導向的教學結構時，不但會減少上述兩種動機，同時會增加其使用自我破壞的比較動機；在比較內容方面，兩種教學結構是較無差異的，都與情緒智力及外表印象等比較內容間有正相關。在社會比較方式上，教師的教學結構並沒有辦法區別出不同比較方式的高中職學生。 三、　社會比較與創意態度及學習行為之關係 （一）創意態度與社會比較行為之關係 創意態度的三項因素皆與社會比較動機及內容同樣是呈顯著之正相關，本研究發現，越不喜歡使用自我評鑑與學習之比較動機，且較少針對情緒智力之相關事物與同學進行比較的高中職學生，其對新觀念的產生較容易抱持消極的態度，且對新觀念及團隊創意會較不重視。 （二）學習行為與社會比較行為之關係 1. 社會比較動機與學習行為之關係 社會比較動機與學習動機、方式及策略之各項因素間呈顯著之正相關，本研究發現，越喜歡使用自我破壞及自我顯揚之比較動機的高中職學生，是較少使用精熟學習動機、合作學習方式及尋求同儕協助的學習策略，這也顯示使用這兩種比較動機，對高中職學生的合作學習的行為有較負向的影響。 2. 社會比較內容與學習行為之關係 社會比較內容與學習動機、方式及策略之各項因素間呈顯著之正相關，本研究發現，喜歡針對外表印象之相關事物與同學進行比較之高中職學生，其較少使用精熟的學習動機，也較少使用合作與個人的學習方式。 3. 社會比較方式與學習行為之關係 本研究發現社會比較方式與學習行為之關係為：學習動機是想要獲得高分，且在學習遇到困難不會向同學尋求協助之高中職學生，越有可能使用向下比較。 四、　高中職學生的性別、知覺教師的教學結構、創意態度及學習行為與社會比較動機、內容之間共可以抽出二組顯著之典型相關。 本研究依據上述之研究結果提出討論，並提出若干點建議供教育輔導工作及未來研究之參考。 / The first purpose of this study was to assess the degree of social comparison motives of senior high school students in Taipei. The second purpose was to investigate how students’ gender and their perceptions of the classroom goal structure related to social comparison motives. The third purpose was to study how social comparison motives influence personal achievement goals and motivated learning strategies for learning and learning preference. The Chinese versions of the Social Comparison Motives Scale (Helgeson & Mickelson, 1995), Attitude Toward Idea Generation Scale (Basadur & Hausdorf, 1996), Achievement Goal Measure (Elliot & Harackiewicwz, 1998), Learning Preference Scale for Students (Owens & Straton, 1980) and Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (Pintrrich, 1989) and two other scales constructed to measure the content and target of social comparison were administered to 565 senior high school students from 11 senior high schools in Taipei. The results supported most hypotheses. Senior high school students prefer to use self-evaluation, self-improvement and common bond as motives for social comparison. They also liked to compare their emotional and intellectual behavior with their classmates. There were some significant differences between males and females in overall social comparison motives and content. Compared with females, males had significantly higher scores on self-enhancement and self-destruction scales. Male students compared more than their female counterparts on physical attractiveness and academic competence. The more students perceived their classroom goal structure to be learning focused, the more they perceived their social comparison motives to be self-evaluation and self-improvement oriented. The study also found that students' self-evaluation and self-improvement motives and intellectual and emotional content for social comparison were positively and significantly related to learning goal orientation, attitude toward idea generation, and academic help-seeking strategy use and preference for cooperative learning. However, students’ self-enhancement and self-destruction motives were negatively and significantly related to learning goal orientation, academic help-seeking strategy use and preference for cooperative learning. The students who scored high on self-enhancement and self-destruction motives also preferred competitive, individual ways of learning and learning via Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2005. / Advisor: Dr. Christine Readdick, Florida State University, College of Human Sciences, Dept. of Family and Child Sciences. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Sept. 19, 2005). Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 190 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2007. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 51 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 28-32).

Humans have an innate need to evaluate themselves and their progress toward life goals and they fulfill this need by comparing themselves to others. One way in which individuals conduct social comparisons is by comparing their possessions with the possessions of others. Prior literature suggests that consumers purchase and conspicuously use brands, not only for their functional benefits, but also for their psychological benefits. These psychological benefits can include reaffirmation of one’s status or group membership and increased self-esteem. Although previous research shows that social comparisons can influence consumer attitudes and behavior, it has focused primarily on the negative consequences of upward comparisons and the positive consequences of downward comparisons in the pre-purchase context. Because consumers do not stop conducting social comparisons once they purchase a brand, it is important to understand how social comparisons affect consumer attitudes and behavioral intentions in a post-purchase context. Additionally, little research has addressed how factors such as a brand’s concept and whether the brand will be used in public (vs. private) affect the relationship between the direction of social comparisons and consumer attitudes and behavioral intentions. This dissertation is focused on filling these gaps by looking at the potentially negative effects of downward comparisons and potentially positive effects of upward comparisons on consumer post-purchase attitudes and behavioral intentions. Specifically, this dissertation examines how observing an unsuccessful (successful) other using the same brand affects consumer attitudes toward the brand, preferences for conspicuous consumption, and repurchase intentions. This dissertation also examines how a brand’s concept and whether the brand is used primarily in public vs. private moderates this relationship. Unlike previous research that shows social comparisons can influence people’s preferences in a pre-purchase context, this research investigated how social comparisons influence people’s attitudes and behavioral intentions in the post-purchase context. Specifically, I examined how people’s attitudes and behavioral intentions towards brands they already own can differ based upon the direction of social comparisons. An examination of social comparison’s effects in the post-purchase context is important given the benefits that repeat and loyal customers provide firms. Results indicate that consumer post-purchase brand attitudes, repurchase intentions, and preferences for conspicuous consumption differ based upon the direction of social comparison. This indicates that attitudes and behavioral intentions can change based upon the direction of the comparison. Results also indicate that the effects of social comparisons on consumer attitudes and behavior are significant for symbolic brands but not for functional brands. Results also indicate that the effects of social comparisons on consumer attitudes and behavior are significant for public brands but not private brands. Finally, results indicate that perceived similarity between a consumer and comparison target mediates the relationship between social comparison and consumer attitudes and behavior. Theoretically, this research adds to the social comparison literature by showing the potentially negative consequences of downward comparisons on consumer attitudes and behavioral attitudes in the post-purchase context. It is also among the first to examine how a brand's concept interacts with the direction of a social comparison. Managerially, this research draws managers' attention to the importance of keeping brand concepts consistent.

Behavior-based safety feedback is increasingly used by organizations to reduce the frequency and severity of work-related injuries. Improvements in safety performance have been demonstrated in numerous settings following behavior-based (BB) safety feedback. The relative impact of global, specific, and social comparison BB feedback on safety behaviors was assessed in the current study. A 2 Feedback Level (Specific, Global) X 2 Feedback Type (Social Comparison, No Social Comparison) analysis of covariance was used to test the hypothesis that specific, social comparison feedback would lead to the greatest improvement in safety percent safe scores. Participants were 97 employees from Shifts 1 and 2 of a soft-drink bottling company in southeastern United States. Results from the study demonstrated a main effect for feedback type. Social comparison feedback led to significantly higher percent safe scores than no social comparison feedback conditions (M=.78 and .68, respectively). Follow-up chi-square analyses and practical considerations suggest global/SCF is optimal for improving safety performance. Limitations of the study and future implications for BB safety feedback research are provided / Ph. D.

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