Social Loafing Definition Social loafing refers to a decline in motivation and effort found when people combine their efforts to form a group product. People tend to generate less output or to contribute less effort when working on a task collectively where contributions are combined than when working individually. The consequence is that people are
In everyday language, loneliness describes feeling disconnected from important others by virtue of physical separation or emotional conflict. In psychology, loneliness is defined as having an inadequate or less satisfying network of friends and family than is desired. Loneliness and aloneness are distinct; solitude is enjoyed when one wants to be alone, whereas loneliness can
Social Anxiety Definition Social anxiety, as the term implies, refers to anxiety (a feeling of emotional distress akin to fear or panic) experienced in interpersonal situations, such as job interviews, dates, public presentations, or casual social gatherings. Because of the variety of situations in which people experience social anxiety, several specific types of social anxiety
Social Dilemmas Definition A social dilemma is a situation in which a group of people must work together to achieve some goal that no one person could easily meet alone. However, if the goal is met, all group members, even those who did not help toward the goal, can enjoy its benefits. This feature introduces
Social Facilitation Definition Social facilitation refers to the general phenomenon that physical and cognitive performance is improved when other people are present (and possibly watching the performer). Psychologists use the term social facilitation/inhibition to indicate that performance is sometimes facilitated while being observed, and other times inhibited in the presence of others. The critical factor
Social Learning Definition Social learning refers to the learning that occurs in social contexts. More precisely, it refers to adaptive behavior change (learning) stemming from observing other people (or other animals), rather than learning from one’s own direct experience. People acquire and change social behaviors, attitudes, and emotional reactions from observing and imitating the actions
Originally developed by Henri Tajfel and John Turner to understand the psychological bases of intergroup discrimination, social identity theory seeks to explain the psychological and social bases for intergroup behavior and has more recently been used to also understand intragroup processes. Social identity theory can be used in the contexts of multicultural counseling, research, and
For thousands of years there has been philosophical debate about what it is that makes humans different from other species of animals on Earth. Whether one believes that humans are just another step in the evolutionary process or descended from aliens, there is no denying that humans are different from other animals. Although many aspects
Social Influence Definition Social influence means any noncoercive technique, device, procedure, or manipulation that relies on the social psychological nature of the organism as the means for creating or changing the belief or behavior of a target, regardless of whether or not this attempt is based on the specific actions of an influence agent or
Philosophers throughout the ages have debated whether humans actually intend to perform altruistic actions, actions that are beneficial to others and costly to the actor, without any clear resolution. In recent decades, psychologists have addressed the long-standing philosophical debate over the existence of altruism, usually defined as unselfish concern for the welfare of others, with