The phenomenon where individuals exert less effort when working in a group compared to working alone is known as?

The phenomenon where individuals exert less effort when working in a group compared to working alone is accurately identified as social loafing. This concept is rooted in social psychology and suggests that when people are part of a group, they may feel less accountable for their contributions, leading to a reduction in their individual effort.

Social loafing occurs for various reasons, such as diffusion of responsibility, where individuals believe their efforts are less critical to the group's success, or when they perceive that their contributions can go unrecognized in a larger group setting. As a result, members may feel less motivated to push themselves as hard as they would if they were accountable for their own success in a solo task.

In contrast, social facilitation refers to the phenomenon where individuals perform better on simple or well-practiced tasks in the presence of others. Groupthink is related to the tendency of group members to prioritize consensus over critical thinking, potentially leading to poor decision-making. Role clarity involves understanding one's responsibilities within a group, which can actually mitigate social loafing by encouraging individual effort. Thus, social loafing distinctly captures the essence of reduced individual effort in group contexts.