Microsoft Word Chapter 1 done doc

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Zajonc gave the drive theory of social facilitation which 
propounds, the presence of others will improve when they are 
highly skilled. Individuals were likely to perform dominant 
responses in the presence of others than when alone, and their 
performance on various tasks was either enhanced or impaired, 
depending on whether the responses were correct or incorrect in 
each situation.
The following figure illustrates the drive theory of Social Facilitation. 
THE DRIVE THEORY OF SOCIAL FACILATION : 
Presence of 
others; audience 
or spectators 
If dominant responses 
are correct in the 
present situation 
Enhanced tendency to 
perform dominant 
responses 
Performance is 
enhanced 
If dominant responses 
are incorrect in the 
present situation 
Performance is 
impaired 
Heightened 
arousal 

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17 
 
SOCIAL LOAFING AND OTHER TOPICS 
 
When you read this unit you will be able to:- 
• Understand social loafing. 
• Distinguish between cooperation and conflict. 
• Comprehend perceived fairness in group. 
• Understand the process of decision making in the group. 
In the social psychology of groups, social loafing is the 
phenomenon of people making less effort to achieve a goal when 
they work in a group than when they work alone. This is viewed as 
one of the main reasons as to why groups are sometimes less 
productive than the combined performance of their members 
working as individuals. 
The main explanation for social loafing is that people feel 
unmotivated when working with a team, because they think that 
their contributions will not be evaluated or considered. 
According to the results of a meta-analysis study, social 
loafing is a pervasive phenomenon, but it does not occur when 
team members feel that the task or the team itself is important. It 
can occur when the person feels under appreciated within their 
team or group. 
Social loafing occurs in a group situation in which the 
presence of others causes relaxation instead of arousal. When 
individuals relax their performance, they are able to fade into the 
crowd, which is especially appealing to people when they know 
they are not going to be accountable for their actions or 
performance. In easier, less demanding tasks, such as singing 
happy birthday or giving applause, one is likely to exert less effort 
due to the concept of diffusion of responsibility. This occurs when 
people think that they can “get a free ride” because someone else 
will surely pick up the slack. 
Social loafing is associated with poor performance on easy 
tasks. However, people tend to exert more effort on challenging or 
rewarding tasks. If a group is completing a task for some kind of 
reward, such as money or a good grade, then members are more 
likely to try harder. Generally, a greater reward results in more 
motivation to perform well, and therefore, more effort. People will 

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