Social Comparison Theory In Mean Girls, Directed By Mark Waters

Leon Festinger defines social comparison theory as the inclination of humans to assess themselves by comparing them to others (Festinger, 1954). Essentially, this theory says that people use comparison to evaluate their knowledge, beliefs, and feelings, particularly when they feel uncertain about themselves. Other social psychologists describe social comparison theory as the natural drive in people to better themselves and reduce the gap in the level of performance between themselves and other people (Garcia et al., 2013). Festinger came up with two categories of social comparison: upward comparisons, in which people assess themselves against those deemed to be in a better situation, and downward comparison, in which people assess themselves

In the movie Mean Girls, directed by Mark Waters, the concept of social comparison theory is clearly shown through the dynamics, among characters in a high school environment. The movie covers the life of a high school girl, Cady Heron, who is entering her first year of public school since her two parents previously homeschooled her. She befriends classmates Janis and Damien who help her understand school cliques and warn her of the popular clique of girls known as the “Plastics.” An example of social comparison theory is shown during the scene where Janis, Damien, and Cady are sitting together outside and Janis explains to Cady about the popular clique in the school known as the "Plastics." They naturally engage in social comparison by comparing their school social status with the Plastics group. They label the plastics as popular, while they acknowledge that they are not the most popular in the school. Also, when Janis says that Karen Smith, a Plastics member, is one of the dumbest people you'll ever meet, she is also comparing their intelligence by labeling Karen as dumb compared to most