Social Comparison and Consumer Behavior: When Feeling Richer or Poorer Than Others Is More Important Than Being So1

The present study investigates how households’ social comparisons of their economic situation affect purchase decisions. In structured telephone interviews, participants (n= 109) answered questions about purchases of durable goods and groceries. In line with the hypothesis, social comparisons had an effect on purchase decisions of durable goods when controlling for actual economic situation. Households that considered themselves to be worse off economically than others reported fewer purchases of durable goods, perceived the impact on their economy of their latest purchase to be greater, and planned purchases more carefully than did households that considered themselves better off economically than others. Also in line with the hypothesis, for purchases of groceries, households’ actual economic situation was more important than social comparisons.