Question

During an inter-school science exhibition,

Riya, who usually works efficiently when alone, noticed a drop in her productivity while working with a team.
Her friend Arjun, however performed much better during the final group presentation than he did during rehearsals.
Meanwhile, during a debate on climate change, the group members who initially had mild views became more extreme after discussing their options together.
While playing tug of war, only Riya's teammates contributed less efforts in the group task compared to working alone. Based on the above situation, identify and explain any four psychological concepts related to group influence on individual behaviour.

Hint:

Social Loafing = Decreased effort (Tug of war).
Social Facilitation = Increased effort (Audience presence).
Group Polarization = Extreme views (Post-discussion).

Answer 1

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Group influence refers to the way being in a group or the presence of others affects an individual's thoughts, feelings, and actions.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Based on the scenarios provided, the four psychological concepts are:
1. Social Loafing: (Observed with Riya and the tug-of-war team). This is the reduction in individual effort when working on a collective task where individual contributions cannot be identified. Riya and her teammates feel less accountable in a group.
2. Social Facilitation: (Observed with Arjun). This is the improvement in performance on a well-learned task in the presence of an audience. Arjun performed better during the final presentation because the presence of others increased his arousal.
3. Group Polarization: (Observed during the debate). This is the tendency for groups to make decisions that are more extreme than the initial inclination of its members after a group discussion. Mild views became extreme due to social comparison and informational influence.
4. Diffusion of Responsibility: (This is the underlying mechanism for Social Loafing). In a group, the sense of personal responsibility for the outcome is spread across all members. Individuals feel that if the task fails, it is not solely their fault, leading to reduced effort.
Step 3: Final Answer:
The four concepts are Social Loafing, Social Facilitation, Group Polarization, and Diffusion of Responsibility.