We're Number One

In a study, students were asked to describe the outcome of a football game their school team had played. They used terms designed to keep themselves separate from their vanquished team. The researchers found that those who did well on a general knowledge test later used we about equally whether they were describing a home team victory or defeat. This finding tells me that it is not when we have a strong feeling of recognized personal accomplishment that we will seek to bask in reflected glory. Instead, it will be when prstige, both public and private, is low, that we will be intent upon using the successes of associated others to help restore image.