Effects of observer's own status on reactions to a high achiever's failure: Deservingness, resentment, schadenfreude, and sympathy

This study used deservingness theory to investigate the effects of assigned status on reactions to a high achiever's success and on both pleasure or schadenfreude and sympathy following the high achiever's failure. Deservingness was manipulated by varying the amount of effort, high or low, associated with performance outcome. Participants were 251 undergraduates who role-played a student whose academic performance status was either low, average, or high. Results showed that lower assigned status was associated with more resentment and less pleasure concerning the performance outcomes of both role-player and high achiever, and with more reported schadenfreude and less sympathy for the failed high achiever. Schadenfreude was also predicted by resentment and displeasure related to the deservingness of the high achiever and by a wish to denigrate the high achiever.