Group Problems and Solutions
Group Problems and Solutions
Social Loafing
Social loafing is the tendency for group members to exert less effort toward achieving a goal when engaged in group work than they would if working individually. The larger the size of the group, the greater the tendency for social loafing to occur since the kind and quality of each person’s specific contributions are more difficult to identify. It most often occurs because group members think their contributions will not be individually noticed or graded, or because they don’t feel appreciated by their team – so they don’t feel motivated to perform.
Consequences of social loafing include dissatisfaction with the loafing group member, resentment on the part of team members who do most of the work, less productivity, and failure of the group to become a cohesive, bonded team.
Free Riding
Free riding is another term for social loafing and again it occurs when an individual in a group does not do his/her share of the work, forcing others to choose between working harder or accepting a poor project and a lower grade. As with social loafing, free riding has negative implications for the success of the team and the sense of well-being among members.
Facilitating the Dark Side of Teams
Those who’ve experienced online group work are likely to agree that collaborating in a virtual classroom presents more challenges than collaborating in a face-to-face environment. Nevertheless, we can help avert social-loafing and free-riding behaviors and the negative consequences that ensue by clarifying roles and responsibilities, and by closely tracking (even publicizing) individual contributions to team efforts, which may allow online group members to gain a sense of personal achievement. Additionally, we should emphasize that cohesive teamwork is a prerequisite for accomplishing the end goals of the project, and that individual task contributions ultimately affect the overall success of the group.
Thus, motivation is an important ingredient in preventing social loafing and free riding. These behaviors are not uncommon in groups, but if the team feels that the group’s purpose or goal is important they generally will not occur – and the same if each individual team member feels his/her contributions within the group are important. Assigning real-life projects for teamwork, with real-life application and benefits for an audience, causes teams to feel their work is important. And knowing that individual effort will be evaluated by others in the group discourages social loafing as well.
Facilitators also can reduce social loafing and increase individual performance by keeping groups small, having groups establish ground rules or rules of conduct, building in evaluation (especially peer evaluation), and ensuring that each team member realizes his/her task is important to the group goal and to the success of the team effort. Social loafing and free riding will occur less if the assigned task captures the imagination and interest of the team members.
Reducing Slacker Behaviors
Summary of Beneficial Factors for Reducing Slacker Behaviors Facilitator:
Group Members:
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