PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Comparison”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMed1993

[Comparison of the cleansing effect of two micromotor-driven endodontic hand pieces. I. Comparison ot the cleansing effect of the two handpieces].

The aim of the study was to assess the cleansing-effect of two endodontic handpieces (Excalibur, W & H; MM 1400 Micro Méga) in root canals that were previously manually prepared, and treated with chlor-(Neomagnol) and citric acid containing solutions. The analyses were performed by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The elimination of the Smear Layer (SL) with Neomagnol was not successful with either of the two handpieces. The cleansing of the Superficial Debris (SD) with Neomagnol activated by MM 1400 was significantly more effective in the apical (p < 0.05) and in the middle (p < 0.01) third of the root-canal, than by Excalibur. In contrast, SL was better eliminated by Excalibur using citric acid, significant differences--when compared with MM 1400--could be seen in the middle third (p < 0.05) of the root-canal. The handpieces seem to have their own specific characteristics: thus MM 1400 was better in eliminating the SD (used with Neomagnol), while Excalibur was superior in eliminating the SL (used with citric acid).

Dental Instruments↗
PubMed1993

[Reference controlled, randomized double-blind study of the effectiveness of a salbutamol/DNCG DA combination in bronchial hyperreactivity in comparison with salbutamol DA alone (parallel group comparison)].

We examined 20 patients in whom bronchial hyperreactivity and positive inhalative methacholine provocation test (dosage-effect curve) had been known for at least 3 months at the time of study. The patients received randomised either DA Salbutamol/DNCG (0.1 mg Salbutamol and 1.0 mg DNCG/puff) or DA Salbutamol alone (0.1 mg Salbutamol puff). In each case the therapy consisted of 4 x 2 puffs daily. The minimum treatment time was 14 days. The average treatment time was 16 days in both groups. The major aim of the study was to find out whether treatment with the combination preparation in the inhalative methacholine test would lead to a higher provocation dose (PD) for the Rt value and/or sGaw and/or FEV1 representing an alleviation of bronchial hyperreactivity, compared with the pre-examination and with the control group with Salbutamol monotherapy. In addition, the effectivity was to be documented by means of peak-flow values to be measured by the patient himself. The results show in both groups a mild but statistically not significant reduction of the provocation reaction in the inhalative methacholine provocation test in the sense of an improvement in bronchial hyperreactivity. No significant difference between the therapy groups, and especially no superiority of the combination treatment, is evident.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

[Vitamin E: comparison of efficiency of incorporation of alpha-tocopherol in the organs in comparison to gamma-tocopherol].

Refeeding rats deficient in vitamin E with alpha-tocopherol induces increased amount of this compound in brain, cerebellum, sciatic nerve and muscle. This increase is regular with time. The optimum level (corresponding to non-deficient animals) is not reached within 8 weeks after refeeding. Thus recovery is very slow for the nervous tissue (as it has been demonstrated for polyunsaturated fatty acids). In contrast, the optimum level is reached within 2 weeks for liver and serum. Refeeding rat deficient in vitamin E with gamma-tocopherol induces an increase of this compound in the liver, the plateau is reached within 2 weeks, but is clearly lower than the one obtained with alpha-tocopherol : approximately 4 times lower. In the muscle, the uptake is linear with time, the plateau is not reached within 8 weeks, its level is 4 times lower than with alpha-tocopherol. Important point : feeding animals deficient in vitamin E with gamma-tocopherol induces in the nervous system a level of gamma-tocopherol which is not the one of the residual alpha-tocopherol; the plateau is not reached within 8 weeks. In sciatic nerve and cerebellum (but not in the brain) increased amount of gamma-tocopherol as a function of time is parallel with a slight but significant reduction of the residual alpha-tocopherol. In another experiment, rats were fed a diet deficient with vitamin E until 60 days of age. From this age, they received a non deficient diet until 120 days. In all organs, increasing the ratio gamma/alpha tocopherol (with a constant amount of alpha-tocopherol) induces an increase of alpha-tocopherol. This result is unexpected, as it was possible to propose that gamma-tocopherol could reduce alpha-tocopherol utilisation by competition. Conversely, the presence of alpha-tocopherol seems to increase incorporation of gamma-tocopherol, except in brain and sciatic nerve. The presence of gamma-tocopherol seems to induce increased need of alpha-tocopherol. This specificity for alpha-tocopherol is very important in terms of nutrition and pharmacology. In fact, at least to preserve biological membranes, it is important to provide only alpha-tocopherol, and not other molecules.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

[The action of the proton pump inhibitor pantoprazol against acetylsalicylic acid-induced gastroduodenopathy in comparison to ranitidine. An endoscopic controlled, double blind comparison].

In a randomised double-blind parallel study the gastroduodenal tolerability of 300 mg acetylsalicilic acid daily (ASA, CAS 50-78-2) has been evaluated in the presence of placebo (n = 8), 40 mg pantoprazole (CAS 102625-70-7) daily (8 a.m.) (n = 16) and 300 mg ranitidine (CAS 66357-35-5) daily (8 a.m.) (n = 16) in healthy volunteers using upper GI-endoscopy. The treatment period lasted 14 days, endoscopic controls were performed at entry and repeated at day 14. At entry, the mean endoscopic score averaged 1.0 +/- 0.0 (+/- SEM) in the ASA/placebo, in the ASA/pantoprazole and the ASA/ranitidine group. In the placebo experiments 300 mg ASA daily induced marked gastroduodenal lesions at day 14 (lesion score of 6.8 +/- 1.4 (+/- SEM). Concomitant administration of 40 mg pantoprazole daily offered significant protection against 300 mg ASS daily on day 14 (2.1 +/- 0.6) (+/- SEM) (p < 0.05) vs ASA/placebo. 300 mg ASA plus 300 mg ranitidine daily reduced the damaging score to 4.9 +/- 1.2 (+/- SEM) (n.s. vs ASA/ placebo). Our data suggest that coadministration of 40 mg pantoprazole daily reduces significantly gastroduodenal lesions evoked by 300 mg ASA daily.

2-Pyridinylmethylsulfinylbenzimidazoles↗
PubMed1998

[The short-acting insulin analog Lispro (Humalog) in the treatment of diabetes--comparison of preprandial and postprandial administration and comparison with treatment using Humulin R].

The results of a clinical trial comprising 162 type 1 and 2 diabetics who took for 12 weeks Humalog in cartridges revealed that administration of this insulin before or 20 minutes after a meal does not affect the blood sugar level in a major way. None of the patients developed after Humalog administration local or general allergic manifestations. Hypoglycaemic episodes grade I and II were not more frequent during treatment with human insulins. The mean compensation of diabetes (HbA1c) remained unchanged. 80% of the diabetics are statistically significantly satisfied with Humalog treatment as compared with Humulinem R administration.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Indirect comparisons of competing interventions.

OBJECTIVES: To survey the frequency of use of indirect comparisons in systematic reviews and evaluate the methods used in their analysis and interpretation. Also to identify alternative statistical approaches for the analysis of indirect comparisons, to assess the properties of different statistical methods used for performing indirect comparisons and to compare direct and indirect estimates of the same effects within reviews. DATA SOURCES: Electronic databases. REVIEW METHODS: The Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE) was searched for systematic reviews involving meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that reported both direct and indirect comparisons, or indirect comparisons alone. A systematic review of MEDLINE and other databases was carried out to identify published methods for analysing indirect comparisons. Study designs were created using data from the International Stroke Trial. Random samples of patients receiving aspirin, heparin or placebo in 16 centres were used to create meta-analyses, with half of the trials comparing aspirin and placebo and half heparin and placebo. Methods for indirect comparisons were used to estimate the contrast between aspirin and heparin. The whole process was repeated 1000 times and the results were compared with direct comparisons and also theoretical results. Further detailed case studies comparing the results from both direct and indirect comparisons of the same effects were undertaken. RESULTS: Of the reviews identified through DARE, 31/327 (9.5%) included indirect comparisons. A further five reviews including indirect comparisons were identified through electronic searching. Few reviews carried out a formal analysis and some based analysis on the naive addition of data from the treatment arms of interest. Few methodological papers were identified. Some valid approaches for aggregate data that could be applied using standard software were found: the adjusted indirect comparison, meta-regression and, for binary data only, multiple logistic regression (fixed effect models only). Simulation studies showed that the naive method is liable to bias and also produces over-precise answers. Several methods provide correct answers if strong but unverifiable assumptions are fulfilled. Four times as many similarly sized trials are needed for the indirect approach to have the same power as directly randomised comparisons. Detailed case studies comparing direct and indirect comparisons of the same effect show considerable statistical discrepancies, but the direction of such discrepancy is unpredictable. CONCLUSIONS: Direct evidence from good-quality RCTs should be used wherever possible. Without this evidence, it may be necessary to look for indirect comparisons from RCTs. However, the results may be susceptible to bias. When making indirect comparisons within a systematic review, an adjusted indirect comparison method should ideally be used employing the random effects model. If both direct and indirect comparisons are possible within a review, it is recommended that these be done separately before considering whether to pool data. There is a need to evaluate methods for the analysis of indirect comparisons for continuous data and for empirical research into how different methods of indirect comparison perform in cases where there is a large treatment effect. Further study is needed into when it is appropriate to look at indirect comparisons and when to combine both direct and indirect comparisons. Research into how evidence from indirect comparisons compares to that from non-randomised studies may also be warranted. Investigations using individual patient data from a meta-analysis of several RCTs using different protocols and an evaluation of the impact of choosing different binary effect measures for the inverse variance method would also be useful.

Bias↗
PubMed1985

Social comparison in adjustment to breast cancer.

We investigated four theoretical perspectives concerning the role of social comparison (Festinger, 1954) in coping with a threatening event in a sample of breast cancer patients. According to the supercoper perspective, personal contact with comparison others is often unavailable to patients, and contact with media "supercopers"--fellow victims presented as adjusting very smoothly--may make patients feel inadequate by comparison. According to the similarity perspective, patients select comparison targets who are similar to themselves because those comparisons should be the most informative. The upward comparison perspective is predictive of comparisons to relatively advantaged or superior individuals. The downward comparison perspective leads to the prediction that under conditions of threat, individuals make comparisons to people who are inferior or less fortunate in order to enhance their self-esteem. We interviewed 78 breast cancer patients, and results of both closed-ended questions and spontaneously offered comparisons yielded a preponderance of downward comparisons. The results point to the value of using naturalistic methods for studying comparisons, and suggest a more active and cognitive role for social comparison than is usually portrayed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2004

Risk comparisons, conflict, and risk acceptability claims.

Despite many claims for and against the use of risk comparisons in risk communication, few empirical studies have explored their effect. Even fewer have examined the public's relative preferences among different kinds of risk comparisons. Two studies, published in this journal in 1990 and 2003, used seven measures of "acceptability" to examine public reaction to 14 examples of risk comparisons, as used by a hypothetical factory manager to explain risks of his ethylene oxide plant. This study examined the effect on preferences of scenarios involving low or high conflict between the factory manager and residents of the hypothetical town (as had the 2003 study), and inclusion of a claim that the comparison demonstrated the risks' acceptability. It also tested the Finucane et al. (2000) affect hypothesis that information emphasizing low risks-as in these risk comparisons-would raise benefits estimates without changing risk estimates. Using similar but revised scenarios, risk comparison examples (10 instead of 14), and evaluation measures, an opportunity sample of 303 New Jersey residents rated the comparisons, and the risks and benefits of the factory. On average, all comparisons received positive ratings on all evaluation measures in all conditions. Direct and indirect measures showed that the conflict manipulation worked; overall, No-Conflict and Conflict scenarios evoked scores that were not significantly different. The attachment to each risk comparison of a risk acceptability claim ("So our factory's risks should be acceptable to you.") did not worsen ratings relative to conditions lacking this claim. Readers who did or did not see this claim were equally likely to infer an attempt to persuade them to accept the risk from the comparison. As in the 2003 article, there was great individual variability in inferred rankings of the risk comparisons. However, exposure to the risk comparisons did not reduce risk estimates significantly (while raising benefit estimates), and Conflict-Claim respondents found the risk of the hypothetical factory less acceptable than No-Conflict respondents. Results suggest that neither risk comparisons nor risk acceptability claims are automatically anathema to audiences, but they may have tiny or unintended effects on audience judgments about risky situations.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1998

Molecular shape comparisons in searches for active sites and functional similarity.

Here we examine the reliability of surface comparisons in searches for active sites in proteins. Detection of a patch of surface on one protein which is similar to an active site in another, may suggest similarities in enzymatic mechanisms, in enzyme functions and implicate a potential target for ligand/inhibitor design. Specifically, we compare the efficacy of molecular surface comparisons with comparisons of surface atoms and of C(alpha) backbone atoms. We further investigate comparisons of specific atoms, belonging to a predefined pattern of catalytic residues versus comparisons of molecular surfaces and, separately, of surface atoms. This aspect is particularly relevant, as catalytic residues may be (partially) buried. We also explore active site comparisons versus comparisons in which the entire molecular surfaces are scanned. While here we focus on the geometrical aspect of the problem, we also investigate the effect of adding residue labels in these comparisons. Our extensive studies cover the serine proteases, containing the highly conserved triad motif, and the chorismate mutases. Since such active site comparisons entail comparisons between unconnected points in 3D space, an order-independent comparison technique is necessary. The geometric hashing algorithm is ideally suited to handling such a task. It can perform both global shape matching for the whole surfaces of large protein molecules and searching for local shape similarities for small surface motifs. Our results show that molecular surface comparisons work best when the similarity is high. As the similarity deteriorates, the number of potential solutions increases rapidly, making their ranking difficult, particularly when scanning entire molecular surfaces. Utilizing atomic coordinates directly appears more adequate under such circumstances.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed2006

Using meta-regression in performing indirect-comparisons: comparing escitalopram with venlafaxine XR.

BACKGROUND: In the absence of well-powered, randomised, direct-comparison trials, indirect comparisons are the only option for comparing treatment strategies. Several methodologies have been developed and each has sparked criticism. Using direct comparisons of escitalopram versus venlafaxine extended release (XR), we explore the differences between the two compounds through indirect comparisons. METHODS: The CENTRAL, Medline and Embase databases were interrogated, focusing on randomized placebo-controlled clinical trials involving adult patients treated for major depressive disorder in the acute phase. Corresponding authors were contacted to reduce missing data. Effect sizes were derived from each study's primary outcome. For indirect comparisons, a global effect size was computed through meta-regression. For direct comparisons, the studies were considered separately due to missing data. Non-inferiority assessments were employed. The conclusion of the meta-regression was then compared with the conclusions made in direct comparison trials. RESULTS: Ten placebo-controlled studies--six assessing escitalopram and four assessing venlafaxine XR--and two direct comparison studies were retrieved. Escitalopram was found to be non-inferior to venlafaxine XR in both indirect and direct comparisons with results of mean -0.02 (unilateral 95% confidence interval [CI] -0.16 to infinity) and 0.23 (95% CI -0.01 to infinity), respectively. Results obtained by both indirect and direct comparisons were similar. Investigating the influence of age, gender repartition and severity at baseline suggests that results are consistent. Results were also considered robust against publication bias. CONCLUSIONS: This empirical finding suggests that escitalopram is non-inferior to venlafaxine XR. This reinforces the evidence found in direct comparisons trials. Indirect comparisons through meta-regression may be suitable to support decision-making. To fully assess its potential, further evaluation of this methodology, using other examples, is needed.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

International price comparisons for pharmaceuticals. Measurement and policy issues.

Cross-national price comparisons for pharmaceuticals are commonly used for two purposes. Comparisons based on a sample of products are used to draw conclusions about differences in average price levels. Cross-national comparisons applied to individual products are also used by governments to set domestic prices. This paper examines the major methodological issues raised by international price comparisons, focusing on measurement of differences in average price levels and the validity of policy conclusions drawn from such price comparison studies. It argues that valid measures of average price levels can only be obtained from comparisons based on a comprehensive or representative sample of products, appropriately weighted, following standard index number methods. Comparisons of individual product prices should take into account the manufacturer's entire product portfolio over time rather than focus narrowly on a single product at a point in time. Because of the great variation across countries in both the range of drug compounds available and the dosage forms, strengths and pack sizes for each compound, obtaining a broadly comprehensive or representative sample is problematical. If products are required to match on all dimensions, including molecule, manufacturer, strength and pack, as is common in most international price comparisons, then only a very small and unrepresentative sample of the drugs available in each country can be included in the analysis. A trade-off between the desire to compare only identical products and the need to compare a truly representative sample of a country's pharmaceutical market is therefore necessary. A valid comparison of average drug prices should include generics and over-the-counter products that are good substitutes for branded prescription drugs, with all forms, strengths and packs. To achieve this broad representation, however, the requirements of same manufacturer, same brand, dosage form, strength and pack size must be dropped. When such an approach is taken to the comparison of international drug prices, quite different results from those obtained from less comprehensive comparisons may be obtained. Indeed, a major conclusion of this analysis is that international drug price comparisons are extremely sensitive to choices made about certain key methodological issues, such as sample selection, unit of measurement for price and volume, the relative weight given to consumption patterns in the countries being compared, and the use of exchange rates or purchasing power parities for currency conversion. In particular, the results of this analysis indicate that recent reports suggesting that manufacturer prices in the US are 32% higher than in Canada and 60% higher than in the UK are in fact overstatements which arise from limitations of the sample and methods used to calculate these price differentials.

Dosage Forms↗
PubMed2005

Multielement trace determination in SiC powders: assessment of interlaboratory comparisons aimed at the validation and standardization of analytical procedures with direct solid sampling based on ETV ICP OES and DC arc OES.

The members of the committee NMP 264 "Chemical analysis of non-oxidic raw and basic materials" of the German Standards Institute (DIN) have organized two interlaboratory comparisons for multielement determination of trace elements in silicon carbide (SiC) powders via direct solid sampling methods. One of the interlaboratory comparisons was based on the application of inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry with electrothermal vaporization (ETV ICP OES), and the other on the application of optical emission spectrometry with direct current arc (DC arc OES). The interlaboratory comparisons were organized and performed in the framework of the development of two standards related to "the determination of mass fractions of metallic impurities in powders and grain sizes of ceramic raw and basic materials" by both methods. SiC powders were used as typical examples of this category of material. The aim of the interlaboratory comparisons was to determine the repeatability and reproducibility of both analytical methods to be standardized. This was an important contribution to the practical applicability of both draft standards. Eight laboratories participated in the interlaboratory comparison with ETV ICP OES and nine in the interlaboratory comparison with DC arc OES. Ten analytes were investigated by ETV ICP OES and eleven by DC arc OES. Six different SiC powders were used for the calibration. The mass fractions of their relevant trace elements were determined after wet chemical digestion. All participants followed the analytical requirements described in the draft standards. In the calculation process, three of the calibration materials were used successively as analytical samples. This was managed in the following manner: the material that had just been used as the analytical sample was excluded from the calibration, so the five other materials were used to establish the calibration plot. The results from the interlaboratory comparisons were summarized and used to determine the repeatability and the reproducibility (expressed as standard deviations) of both methods. The calculation was carried out according to the related standard. The results are specified and discussed in this paper, as are the optimized analytical conditions determined and used by the authors of this paper. For both methods, the repeatability relative standard deviations were <25%, usually ~10%, and the reproducibility relative standard deviations were <35%, usually ~15%. These results were regarded as satifactory for both methods intended for rapid analysis of materials for which decomposition is difficult and time-consuming. Also described are some results from an interlaboratory comparison used to certify one of the materials that had been previously used for validation in both interlaboratory comparisons. Thirty laboratories (from eight countries) participated in this interlaboratory comparison for certification. As examples, accepted results are shown from laboratories that used ETV ICP OES or DC arc OES and had performed calibrations by using solutions or oxides, respectively. The certified mass fractions of the certified reference materials were also compared with the mass fractions determined in the interlaboratory comparisons performed within the framework of method standardization. Good agreement was found for most of the analytes.

Calibration↗
PubMed2006

Current and former depression and their relationship to the effects of social comparison processes. Results of an internet based study.

BACKGROUND: According to cognitive vulnerability stress models of depression, negative cognitions are supposed to be stable characteristics of depressed individuals even between depressive episodes. Depressed people also interpret social information more negatively than healthy people, perhaps even between depressive episodes. Frequency of social comparison processes is correlated with low self-esteem and uncertainty, which is common in depression. QUESTIONS: Do people with lifetime depressive episodes engage in social comparisons more often and do they react more negatively to an upward comparison than normal controls? And if they do, is this just due to current depressive symptoms? METHOD: A questionnaire including the BDI II was administered as an internet link to all students or employees of a large University. 913 participants responded. After assessing social comparison orientation we used an upward comparison paradigm by asking the participants to compare themselves with a better-off person on several dimensions. Finally lifetime and current depressive symptoms were assessed. RESULTS: Depressed persons engage in social comparison processes more often than normal controls. Positive affect decreased in the whole sample as a reaction of to social comparison. This effect was stronger among persons with at least one depressive episode in the past, and this was not just due to current depression. CONCLUSION: Depressed persons engage more often in social comparison processes and they additionally react more negatively to upward comparisons than healthy controls. The result that even those not currently depressed with lifetime depressive episodes show a similar negative reaction to an upward comparison indicates that social comparisons are situations that interact with a stable cognitive vulnerability leading to negative affect and stronger negative reactions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

The design and testing of novel clinical parameters for dose comparison.

PURPOSE: New multidimensional dose comparison parameters, normalized agreement test (NAT) values and the NAT index, are introduced and compared with an ideal dose comparison parameter. In this article, we analyze a clinically based two-dimensional (2D) quantitative dose comparison case using a wide range of new and old comparison tools. In doing so, we address the benefits and limitations of many common dose comparison tools. METHODS AND MATERIALS: An in-house software program was developed using the MATLAB 6.5 programming language. Using this software, several 2D quantitative dose comparison parameters were calculated for the computed and measured dose distributions in an intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) prostate cancer treatment. The experiences gained in the design and testing of this software program form the basis of the dose comparison tool analysis. RESULTS: Each dose comparison tool has unique strengths and weaknesses. The underlying assumptions of the NAT values and NAT index lead to acceptable generalized behavior, but are not always valid. CONCLUSION: A thorough 2D quantitative dose comparison analysis can only be accomplished through the use of many dose comparison tools. The introduction of the NAT index allows a 2D dose comparison to be reduced to a single value, and is thus ideal for setting clinical acceptance criteria for IMRT verifications.

Humans↗
PubMed2003

Validity of indirect comparison for estimating efficacy of competing interventions: empirical evidence from published meta-analyses.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the validity of adjusted indirect comparisons by using data from published meta-analyses of randomised trials. DESIGN: Direct comparison of different interventions in randomised trials and adjusted indirect comparison in which two interventions were compared through their relative effect versus a common comparator. The discrepancy between the direct and adjusted indirect comparison was measured by the difference between the two estimates. DATA SOURCES: Database of abstracts of reviews of effectiveness (1994-8), the Cochrane database of systematic reviews, Medline, and references of retrieved articles. RESULTS: 44 published meta-analyses (from 28 systematic reviews) provided sufficient data. In most cases, results of adjusted indirect comparisons were not significantly different from those of direct comparisons. A significant discrepancy (P<0.05) was observed in three of the 44 comparisons between the direct and the adjusted indirect estimates. There was a moderate agreement between the statistical conclusions from the direct and adjusted indirect comparisons (kappa 0.51). The direction of discrepancy between the two estimates was inconsistent. CONCLUSIONS: Adjusted indirect comparisons usually but not always agree with the results of head to head randomised trials. When there is no or insufficient direct evidence from randomised trials, the adjusted indirect comparison may provide useful or supplementary information on the relative efficacy of competing interventions. The validity of the adjusted indirect comparisons depends on the internal validity and similarity of the included trials.

Data Interpretation, Statistical↗
PubMed2006

Different selves have different effects: self-activation and defensive social comparison.

Three studies show that different forms of self-activation have differential influences on the processing of social comparison information. Activating neutral self-conceptions results in defensive processing of threatening social comparison information (Study 1). Participants maintain favorable self-evaluations in the face of upward comparison and rate the upward target of comparison negatively. Activating positive self-conceptions results in non-defensive processing of threatening social comparison information (Study 2). Participants endorse negative self-evaluations following upward comparison and rate the upward target of comparison positively. Activating negative self-conceptions maximizes defensive processing of threatening social comparison information (Study 3). Participants maintain favorable self-evaluations in the face of upward comparison and rate both upward and downward targets of comparison negatively. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for strategies to maintain self-esteem in the face of threatening comparisons.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Factors important for the measurement of social comparison in chronic illness: a mixed-methods study.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine social comparison in illness using a mixed-methods approach that combined inductive exploration of how people used social comparison in this self-help group with a quantitative study of social comparison processes and their relationship to quality of life. METHODS: The qualitative study involved 15 semi-structured interviews with people with Ménière's disease. Themes from the analysis of the interviews informed the development of the Social Comparison in Illness Scale (SCIS), which was then validated in a questionnaire study, in which participants with Ménière's disease (n = 196) completed the SCIS, the previously validated Identification/Contrast social comparison scale, and the SF-36 health status questionnaire. RESULTS: The qualitative study uncovered a wide range of forms of social comparison, including upward, downward and lateral comparison on illness and coping dimensions, as well as comparing solely for informational purposes. The quantitative study indicated that these varied directions and dimensions of social comparison could be mapped onto five reliable categories that were related to quality of life: upward positive and downward positive comparison, upward negative and downward negative comparison, and comparing for information. DISCUSSION: These analyses highlight the complexity of socially comparing in chronic illness, but also confirm the validity of the Identification/Contrast model of social comparison in this context.

Adaptation, Psychological↗