An Assessment of Envy in Undergraduates of a State University in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Envy, a universal emotion, occurs when an individual sees in another, attributes perceived to be lacking in oneself. It is a distressing emotion which could be socially destructive. Empirical data on this construct is scarce, particularly from Asian countries. This study aimed to fill this gap by (i) culturally adapting, to Sinhala, the internationally used, Benign and Malicious Envy Scale (BeMaS), (ii) using it to assess the two dimensions of envy, i.e. benign envy (motivate the envier to strive towards greater heights) and malicious envy (envier aims to harm the envied), among undergraduates in a state university in the country, and (iii) assessing selected correlates associated with envy. As part of a larger study, BeMaS was administered on a sample of 1331 undergraduates of three faculties of a state university in Sri Lanka. Results indicated that Sri Lankan undergraduates are higher in benign envy than malicious envy and that rates of envy among them are lower or similar to those in other countries. The results also indicated that men report higher levels of envy than women and testing for invariance revealed that the nature of envy is somewhat different for men and women. The potential reasons for these findings are discussed in the light of Asian and Sri Lankan socio-cultural context. Recommendations to higher education institutions are made in the light of these findings, to reduce envy and increase psychological well-being.