CFP: The Philosophy of Social Comparison

The Philosophy of Social Comparison Special Issue explores a range of philosophical perspectives on social comparison including four key areas of interest:

1) The structure, components, modes and directions of operationality (upward, downward, and lateral), but also the conditions and environments conducive to social comparison proliferation or mitigation.

2) The moral psychology of social comparison regarding individual and shared motivations to engage in social comparison including sentiments/emotions/affects, knowledge acquisition and processing and dispositions that produce, enhance, and result from social comparison behaviors.

3) The conditions under which social comparison acts, attitudes, and affective states can be deemed blameworthy/praiseworthy, good/bad/harmful, or morally neutral.

4) The areas of influence of social comparison on human identity, knowledge acquisition (stereotyping efficiency) and its veracity (overconfidence, grandstanding), social cohesion, well-being, moral development, and others.

Potential contributors to the special issue:

1) scholars presenting at the “Philosophical Perspectives on Social Comparison” workshop at the Interdisciplinary Center for Ethics, Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Poland, 3-4 April 2025, and

2) scholars responding to a separate call for submission to Philosophia’s Special Issue “The Philosophy of Social Comparison” publicized after the workshop.

When uploading your paper in the online submission system SNAPP, please select the collection “Philosophy of Social comparison” in the drop-down menu.

• Papers should not exceed a maximum of 9,000 words.

• All papers will undergo the journal’s standard review procedure (double-blind peer-review), according to the journal’s Peer Review Policy, Process and Guidance.

CONTACT: For any questions, please directly contact the Guest Editor: Wojciech Kaftanski, [email protected]