Social comparison processes in organizations

We systematically analyze the role of social comparison processes in organizations. Specifically, we describe how social comparison processes have been used to explain six key areas of organizational inquiry: (1) organizational justice, (2) performance appraisal, (3) virtual work environments, (4) affective behavior in the workplace, (5) stress, and (6) leadership. Additionally, we describe how unique contextual factors in organizations offer new insight into two widely studied sub-processes of social comparison, acquiring social information and thinking about that information. Our analyses underscore the merit of integrating organizational phenomena and social comparison processes in future research and theory

Educating peers about human sexuality and birth control in natural settings: A social comparison perspective

Adolescents are being trained to play several important roles in educating peers about human sexuality and birth control. A social comparison perspective offers numerous advantages over a persuasive communication perspective in the design, implementation, and evaluation of such peer-education programs. In the social comparison perspective, peer educators serve as social referents, providing standards of knowledge and behavior for the contacts with respect to understanding sexuality and preventing pregnancy.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/24948/1/0000375.pd