THE ROLES OF INVIDIOUS COMPARISONS AND DESERVINGNESS IN SYMPATHY AND SCHADENFREUDE

Previous research (Smith et al., 1996) indicated that schadenfreude, p leasure at another's suffering, results when an envied person experien ces a deserved misfortune. This study tested whether invidious compari sons affect schadenfreude when the misfortune is undeserved. Male part icipants watched a videotaped interview of an average or superior male student who had recently suffered either a deserved or undeserved set back. Participants' envy enhanced schadenfreude regardless of deservin gness of the misfortune. The manipulation of deservingness, however, h ad no effect on schadenfreude. The effects of these variables an sympa thy were also examined. Sympathy was greater when the student was aver age (vs. superior) and following an undeserved misfortune (vs. deserve d), indicating that sympathy and schadenfreude are not simply opposite s of each other.