The way groups influence how well we perform can be understood by looking at two main ideas: social facilitation and social loafing. Knowing about these ideas helps us see how thinking about others in a group can really affect how we do.
Social facilitation is when having other people around helps us do better on tasks we find easy or already know how to do well. Here are some important points about this:
On the other hand, social loafing is what happens when people work in a group but put in less effort than when they're working alone. This can lead to lower performance for the whole group. Here are some key points:
How we see other people in a group is really important in deciding if we will experience social facilitation or social loafing:
Expectations of Group Members: If people think their work is being closely watched, they’re more likely to perform better. For example, a study by Oldham and Hackman in 1981 showed that when people know they are accountable in a group, they tend to do better.
Group Cohesion: Groups that get along well tend to have less social loafing. Research shows that when a group is more connected, it can cut down on loafing by 50% because people feel more dedicated to helping the group succeed (Latane et al., 1979).
Task Visibility: When people can see each other’s work, it helps reduce social loafing. A study by Kerr and Alonso in 2004 found that when individuals’ efforts are clear, loafing went down by about 28%.
To sum it all up, how we view others in a group impacts whether we can perform better or not. Our perceptions can lead to better performance or cause us to slack off.
The way groups influence how well we perform can be understood by looking at two main ideas: social facilitation and social loafing. Knowing about these ideas helps us see how thinking about others in a group can really affect how we do.
Social facilitation is when having other people around helps us do better on tasks we find easy or already know how to do well. Here are some important points about this:
On the other hand, social loafing is what happens when people work in a group but put in less effort than when they're working alone. This can lead to lower performance for the whole group. Here are some key points:
How we see other people in a group is really important in deciding if we will experience social facilitation or social loafing:
Expectations of Group Members: If people think their work is being closely watched, they’re more likely to perform better. For example, a study by Oldham and Hackman in 1981 showed that when people know they are accountable in a group, they tend to do better.
Group Cohesion: Groups that get along well tend to have less social loafing. Research shows that when a group is more connected, it can cut down on loafing by 50% because people feel more dedicated to helping the group succeed (Latane et al., 1979).
Task Visibility: When people can see each other’s work, it helps reduce social loafing. A study by Kerr and Alonso in 2004 found that when individuals’ efforts are clear, loafing went down by about 28%.
To sum it all up, how we view others in a group impacts whether we can perform better or not. Our perceptions can lead to better performance or cause us to slack off.