Companies often encourage consumers to compare their performance with others hoping that a comparison with a superior other will motivate consumers in their goal pursuit. However, upward social comparison is often more motivating for maximizers than satisficers. In this research, we take a closer look at the often understudied satisficers and show what types of social comparisons motivate them. Based on the accuracy–effort trade-off, we propose that satisficers care less about achieving more and focus more on the other side of the trade-off—exerting less effort. As a result, a comparison with a superior other who uses less input (vs. achieves more output) is more motivating for satisficers. Three studies support our prediction. Whereas maximizers are motivated by comparing themselves with others who achieve more, satisficers are motivated more by superior others who use less input. Collectively, these findings suggest a more nuanced perspective on satisficers and have implications for both maximizing and social comparison literature.

中文翻译：

---

社会比较能激励满足者吗？投入与产出在向上社会比较中的作用

公司经常鼓励消费者将自己的表现与他人进行比较，希望与优秀的他人进行比较会激励消费者追求目标。然而，向上的社会比较往往比满足者更能激励最大化者。在这项研究中，我们仔细研究了经常被忽视的满足者，并展示了哪些类型的社会比较激励了他们。基于准确性-努力的权衡，我们建议满足者不太关心取得更多成就，而更多地关注权衡的另一面——付出更少的努力。因此，与使用较少投入（相对于获得更多产出）的优秀他人进行比较对满足者来说更有动力。三项研究支持我们的预测。最大化者的动机是通过将自己与取得更多成就的人进行比较，满足者更多地受到使用较少投入的优秀他人的激励。总的来说，这些发现表明了对满足者的更细致入微的观点，并对最大化和社会比较文学都有影响。