Van Rooy, DirkWood, IanTran, Eric2015-04-072015-04-0710927026http://hdl.handle.net/1885/13172We propose a novel agent-based implementation of Festinger’s social comparison theory (SCT). The social comparison model (SCM) consists of connectionist networks that simu- late agent-level social comparison processes. Agent networks are combined into an adap- tive network structure that is shaped by social comparisons between individual agents. Simulations show how the SCM produces behavior consistent with the empirical litera- ture on group dynamics. In addition, experimental results are reported that show how the SCM can simulate how critical and conformist norms affect interpersonal processes and emergent attitudes. We conclude that the coupling of simulations and experiments, and the use of psychologically plausible agent models within adaptive network struc- tures, can provide new impetus to the development of models of individual and social cognition. An integrated framework such as the SCM allows investigating key theoretical predictions around the origin and maintenance of socially shared information through so- cial comparisons in fundamentally novel ways.© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. http://olabout.wiley.com/WileyCDA/Section/id-820227.html The submitted version of an article is the author's version that has not been peer-reviewed, nor had any value added to it by Wiley (such as formatting or copy editing). The submitted version may be placed on: • the author's personal website • the author's company/institutional repository or archive • not for profit subject-based preprint servers or repositories http://www.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo/issn/1092-7026/ Author can - some journals have separate policies, please check with each journal directly. On author's personal website, institutional repositories, arXiv, AgEcon, PhilPapers, PubMed Central, RePEc or Social Science Research Networkarchive pre-print (ie pre-refereeing). Author's pre-print may not be updated with Publisher's Version/PDF. Author's pre-print must acknowledge acceptance for publication. (Sherpa/Romeo as of 30/6/2015).agent-based modellingconnectionismsocial comparison theorygroup dynamicspolarization201410.1002/sres.23212016-06-14