Big-Fish-Little-Pond effect

By Ulrich Trautwein, O. Lüdtke. Vernon Wall Lecture, 2006

94 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Summary: Reference group effects on self-concept have been examined in a multitude of empirical studies in various educational settings. Effects of this kind have been most rigorously demonstrated by Herbert W. Marsh, who introduced the term big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE) to describe the finding that students' self-concept is negatively affected by the achievement level of other students in the same class or school. The phenomenon of the BFLPE is supported by a large body of empirical research. In this contribution, we first discuss mechanisms underlying the BFLPE. Second, we address reference group effects on educational outcomes other than self-concept. Finally, we briefly discuss educational implications of the BFLPE.

Subfields: Education, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, Social Psychology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/6bcd2656c4af264a4a79946b857dca1380a0c9f9

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In Education

In Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

In Social Psychology

Citations in the corpus

Motivation-Achievement Cycles in Learning: a Literature Review and Research Agenda (2021, background): “, students in high-achieving classes having lower ASC than those with comparable aptitude in regular classes) suggests that domain-specific ASC (more so than general ASC) is influenced by social comparison (Fang et al., 2018; Marsh et al., 2018).”
Exceptionally Gifted Children: Long-Term Outcomes of Academic Acceleration and Nonacceleration (2006, background): “Because, according to Marsh and Craven (1998), the BFLPE depends on a change in academic ranking, it was patently not operating with these young people.”
Effects of Programmatic Selectivity on the Academic Achievement, Academic Self-Concepts, and Aspirations of Gifted College Students (2007, background): “For example, Zeidner and Schleyer (1998) examined the BFLPE among gifted Israeli children participating in either homogeneous classes for the gifted or regular, mixed-ability classes.”
The Socioaffective Impact of Acceleration and Ability Grouping (2007, background): “In contrast to those studies that report social or psychological benefits, several studies observed negative socioaffective effects of ability grouping (Adams-Byers et al., 2004; Marsh et al., 1995; Marsh & Hau, 2003; Zeidner & Schleyer, 1999; Zentall et al., 2001).”