In social psychology, people who tend to do less work in a group than they would as individuals are exhibiting which phenomenon?

• A. Social facilitation
• B. Group polarization
• C. Deindividuation
• D. Social loafing

Answer: (D)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the key concept in the question, which is about people doing less work in a group compared to when they work alone.
2. Step 2: Review the definitions of the given options: Social facilitation refers to improved performance on tasks in the presence of others; Group polarization is the tendency for group discussion to strengthen the dominant positions held by individual group members; Deindividuation involves losing self-awareness and self-restraint in group situations.
3. Step 3: Identify that the phenomenon where individuals reduce effort when working in a group is known as Social loafing.
4. Step 4: Recognize that Social loafing occurs because individuals feel less accountable and believe others will pick up the slack in group tasks.
5. Step 5: Conclude that the correct answer to the problem is Social loafing, as it directly describes the behavior of doing less work in a group setting.