Dispositional greed and life satisfaction: the role of social comparison for well-being.

Abstract

There is a lack of studies addressing the psychological mechanisms underlying the association between individual differences in greed and well-being. This study tested the relationship between dispositional greed, and satisfaction with life, as well as the moderating effect of social comparison orientation on this association (N = 373). As expected for hypothesis 1, we found that greed correlated negatively with satisfaction with life, and positively with social comparison orientation, even after controlling for individuals' mental health index (anxiety and depression), supporting the hypothesis 2. Further, the moderating effect of social comparison strengthened the relationship between high levels of dispositional greed and dissatisfaction with life, failing to support hypothesis 3. As such, individuals high on dispositional greed were less satisfied with life if they also showed lower (vs. medium level) levels of social comparison orientation. These findings add to the psychological literature on greed by showing that social comparison is not only positively related to it but can also be a vital mechanism for boosting psychological well-being.