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social dynamics
You exert less effort when working in a group.
The Ringelmann effect, or social loafing, shows that individuals contribute less energy to a shared task than they do when working alone.
As group size increases, individual effort drops proportionally. This happens because individual accountability becomes diffuse and the perceived impact of your personal contribution diminishes. You unknowingly scale your effort to match the collective output.
You are a different worker when you think you are blending in.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Maximilian Ringelmann, 1913
- What the check found
- The claim is accurate in its general premise, though historically Ringelmann's effect involved significant coordination loss, whereas 'social loafing' specifically refers to the motivational component.
- Confidence
- Well replicated
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.