Social Comparison, Judgment, and Behavior

Comparison with other people, a core element of social life, influences self-concept, attitudes, conformity, psychological and physical well-being, achievement, educational outcomes, and social movements. This volume presents classic and state-of-the-science chapters by leading experts that survey the major areas of social comparison theory and research.

Jerry Suls received his Ph.D. in Psychology from Temple University in 1973, and subsequently held faculty positions at Georgetown University, the State University of New York at Albany, and the University of Iowa. Formerly the Editor of Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin (1998-2001) and Social and Personality Psychology Compass (2006-13), he has served on numerous editorial boards and panels. His research has appeared in more than 230 publications and been supported by the National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, National Science Foundation, and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. In 2012, he received the Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award from APA Division 38 (Society for Health Psychology). Currently, Currently, he is an Investigator in the Center for Personalized Health at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in New York City.

Rebecca L. Collins received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1989. She is Senior Behavioral Scientist at the RAND Corporation in Santa Monica, CA. For the past two decades, she has examined how comparison and related processes influence substance use and sexual risk behavior among adolescents, young adults, sexual minorities, and individuals living with HIV infection. Currently, she is studying the effectiveness of social marketing campaigns designed to increase treatment seeking for mental health problems. Her research has appeared on the Today Show, CNN, and NBC Nightly News and has been featured in Time Magazine, The New York Times, the Washington Post, and USA Today.

Ladd Wheeler received his Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1962. His major research interests included social comparison theory, behavioral contagion, attractiveness, and social interaction. He pioneered the use of the rank-order paradigm and diary methods in social comparison research, such as the Rochester Interaction Record and the Social Comparison record. He was president of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology and the founding editor of the Review of Personality and Social Psychology. He passed away in 2018.