Social Facilitation Theory

Social Facilitation Theory, also called the Audience Effect suggests that the presence of other people while any individual is performing any task, can facilitate in increasing the performance of the individual. A psychological notion known as “social facilitation” refers to the tendency for someone’s performance on a task to increase when others are around. 

History and Origin:

The past and the beginning American psychologist Norman Triplett initially put forth the Social Facilitation Theory in 1898. Other psychologists including Floyd H. Allport and John Dashiell went on to expand it.

• Norman Triplett: Triplett observed the concept of social facilitation in riders, who performed better in the presence of other riders. He explained it using the competitive impulse which gives the energy to perform better.
• Floyd H. Allport: Allport was the one who coined the phrase “social facilitation” in 1924 and was the first to use it explicitly. He carried out experiments to test the application of this theory which included word association exercises multiplication tests etc. And then he observed that people performed better in a social environment than in isolation.
• Dashiell, John: Dashiell explained social facilitation theory in his 1935 study by showing how adult participants’ performance of multiplication rose in the presence of an audience. 

Examples of the theory:

• Sports: Sportspersons usually show better performance in teamwork, where the presence of teammates motivates them and boosts their confidence.

• Education: Group studies prove to be very beneficial as students learn things quickly from their peers. They have similar kinds of problems and ways to solve them, which helps them, study better with each other.

• Workplace: In organizational settings, teamwork and collaborative efforts are much encouraged as they add efficiency to the performance of particular tasks. 

• Social Media: Social media is one of the best examples of social facilitation theory. It explains how the thoughts and opinions of others influence us. Many of the social influencer’s performance in content creation is improving a lot these days, just because of the presence of people who appreciates them.

• Everyday Life: Observing others engage in a new activity or behaviour, such as visiting a new restaurant or joining a gym, may encourage an individual to try it too. – When other people are around, it can be easier to complete daily duties like housework and shopping.

Components of the theory:

Cognitive Factors (Distraction Conflict and Attention):

The social facilitation theory suggests that we find conflict between paying attention to the audience or the task that affects our performance. This conflict motivates an individual to pay more attention to ask and improve their performance.

Affective Factors (Anxiety of Being Evaluated):

According to Cottrell (1968), social facilitation occurs because of the apprehension about being evaluated by other people. The approval and disapproval by others trigger an acquired arousal drive based on evaluation anxiety.

Physiological Factors (Drive and Arousal):

Zajonc’s theory of physiological elements, based on Clark Hull’s motivation theory, suggests that instinctual or well-learned behaviour improves. He states that an audience facilitates the emission of well-learned responses and impairs the acquisition of new ones.

Zajonc’s theory is based on the Yerkes-Dodson theory of optimum arousal, which suggests that the dominant response is more likely to occur when other people are present. This theory supports the idea that the presence of others can lead to stress and wrong behaviours.

 Theories based on social facilitation:

• Activation Theory: This theory given by Robert Zajnoc in 1965 explains how arousal affects social facilitation. It explains that heightened arousal increases the likelihood of an organism performing better on well-learned responses.

• Evaluation Approach: The evaluation approach was proposed by Henchy and Glass. It stated that the presence of others doesn’t increase individual activation/arousal but rather the fear of being evaluated by an audience.

• Social Orientation Theory: This theory proposes that the orientation of individuals toward society affects whether they inhibit social facilitation or not.

• Attention Approach: This approach suggests presence of others helps us withdraw our attention from distractions and focus on the necessary things efficiently.

• Self-Presentation Approach: his theory states that the presence of others makes us conscious about our self-presentation in front of them.

Implications:

Social facilitation explains the various implications for understanding the behaviour of individuals in different settings:

• Performance Enhancement or Deterioration: The presence of others often boosts the performance of an individual in simple tasks while an individual can experience a decline in their performance in complex tasks.

• Training and Skill Development: In the initial stage of training, practising in isolation is preferred as it may affect the performance of an individual. But, when the individual has acquired skills, then practising before others can motivate and cheer them up.

• Workplace Productivity: Social facilitation theory can also be applied in designing the workplace environment. E.g. open – space offices can be good for routine tasks that require the involvement of others too. But, the same arrangement won’t be efficient for tasks involving deep concentration and problem-solving.

• Educational Settings: In some situations like giving a speech, the presence of others can boost the confidence of students. But, when a student needs to focus to give a test, then it might be distracting for them.

• Sports and Athletics: Sports people’s performance usually gets better in the presence of others as it motivates and encourages them.  Similarly, it can decrease their arousal if there’s less or no audience to cheer them.

 Criticism:

• Social facilitation theory attributes an increase in an individual’s arousal to the presence of others but, according to the Evaluation approach, it’s because of the fear of being evaluated by an audience.

• The effects of social facilitation aren’t much related to the performer’s evaluation apprehension.

• If an individual is performing a simple task then, the presence of others doesn’t increase physiological arousal much as it is limited to complex tasks.

• The theory assumes that the source of most of the rewards and punishments is the interaction with people surrounding them. But, it doesn’t imply to everyone.

• The theory hasn’t considered the role of individual differences and other factors that may influence social facilitation.

• The definition of social facilitation is so narrow that it doesn’t consider the other forms of social influence

• The research and methods used for collecting data for social facilitation theory have not been updated.

Take away

Social Facilitation Theory, also known as the Audience Effect, suggests that having others around can either help or hurt a person’s performance. This psychological concept was first introduced by American psychologist Norman Triplett in 1898 and expanded by psychologists Floyd H. Allport and John Dashiell. The theory posits that people perform better in social environments when they are around, such as sports, education, workplaces, social media, and everyday life.

The theory consists of cognitive factors (distraction conflict and attention), affective factors (anxiety of being evaluated), and physiological factors (drive and arousal). Cognitive factors involve the conflict between paying attention to the audience or the task, which motivates individuals to pay more attention to improve their performance. Affective factors involve the apprehension about being evaluated by others, which triggers an acquired arousal drive. Physiological factors involve the emission of well-learned responses and impairing the acquisition of new ones.

Several theories based on social facilitation include the activation theory, evaluation approach, social orientation theory, attention approach, and self-presentation approach. These theories explain various implications for understanding individual behaviour in different settings, such as performance enhancement or deterioration, training and skill development, workplace productivity, educational settings, and sports and athletics.

However, the theory is criticized for its narrow definition and lack of consideration for individual differences and other factors that may influence social facilitation. It also has limitations in considering other forms of social influence and the research methods used for collecting data. Overall, the theory provides valuable insights into how social interactions can impact performance and behaviour in various settings.

FAQs

1. Who gave the social facilitation theory?

The concept of social facilitation theory concept was first introduced by American psychologist Norman Triplett in 1898 and expanded by psychologists Floyd H. Allport and John Dashiell.

2. What is social facilitation theory?

A psychological notion known as “social facilitation” refers to the tendency for someone’s performance on a task to increase when others are around. 

3. Where can this theory be applied?

These theories explain various implications for understanding individual behaviour in different settings, such as performance enhancement or deterioration, training and skill development, workplace productivity, educational settings, and sports and athletics.

4. What are the criticisms of this theory?

The theory is criticized for its narrow definition and lack of consideration for individual differences and other factors that may influence social facilitation. It also doesn’t consider other forms of social influence and the research methods used for collecting data.