Question

When a natural disaster causes widespread, severe damage, it is not uncommon for people to acknowledge their losses but then add an "at least" statement, such as, "at least, unlike what happened to others, we all survived;" or, "at least, unlike what happened to others, we still have a home to return to." These statements reflect the use of _____.

Answer 1

Answer:

Downward comparison

Explanation:

The theory of social comparison proposes that people tend to compare themselves with other people who are similar to themselves. They also make upward social comparisons (with people who are superior) in hopes of learning how to improve.

However, sometimes people want to feel better about themselves and they make downward comparisons, which is, they make comparisons with others who are inferior to, or less fortunate than them in some way. They do this in order to feel better.

In this example, when a natural disaster  causes severe damage people say "at least, unlike what happened to others, we survived or we have a home to return to". We can see that they are comparing themselves with others who are less fortunate (who didn't survive or lost their homes), in order to feel better about what happened to them. Therefore, this is an example of downward comparison.