Social facilitation and social loafing are closely-related terms that explain the changes in performance based on the presence of others. Both of the terms are a part of group behavior. While facilitation occurs when the presence of others affects the performance of individuals in either a good or bad way, loafing explains the decrease in performance as a result of relying on the work of others (Stangor, 2014). It is highly typical for students to experience social loafing during work projects because of the opportunity to show less responsibility and get a good grade at the expense of other, more responsible individuals (Aggarwal & O’Brien, 2008). There is a need for peer evaluations to be implemented in group projects to get an indication of which students work hard and which ones rely on others.
While both social facilitation and social loafing denote the changes in performance, the latter indicates a significant decrease in productivity due to the decreased responsibility, while the former shows that people will change because of the impact that others make. In a future career, it is imperative to overcome the challenge of social loafing and rely on the skills and experience oneself. Social facilitation will inevitably occur, encouraging learning and independence in decision-making (Ogienko, 2016). When making important decisions, both social loafing and facilitation can come into play. While loafing would facilitate putting the responsibility on the shoulders of others, facilitation is likely to lead to decisions that would be favored by a group rather than an individual (Baumeister, Ainsworth, & Vohs, 2016). To reduce the impact of social loafing, it is imperative to have rules that define engagement and participation as well as to conduct regular peer evaluations that would offer an insight into the productivity issues of workers.
References
Aggarwal, P., & O’Brien, C. (2008). Social loafing on group projects: structural antecedents and effect on student satisfaction. Journal of Marketing Education, 30(3), 255-264.
Baumeister, R., Ainsworth, S., & Vohs, K. (2016). Are groups more or less than the sum of their members? The moderating role of individual identification. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 39, 1-56.
Ogienko, O. (2016). Facilitation in the context of pedagogical activities. Advanced Education, 5, 85-89.
Stangor, C. (2014). Principles of social psychology. Victoria, Canada: BCcampus.