Social Loafing and the Theory of Mind: Diminished Individual Effort in a Group as a Developmental Function of the Ability to Reason about Other's Beliefs and Intentions
by
LuAnne Carl
University of Southern Maine
Coauthors: Jessica Sheppard, Bill Thornton, R. Bruce Thompson (University of Southern Maine)

Social loafing, or diminished individual output in a group-performance task situation, is attributed to anonymity of one's unique contribution to the collaborative effort and knowledge or awareness that one's unique contribution cannot be evaluated by others. This reflects a fundamental assumption regarding the ability to reason about other people's knowledge and awareness of one's own actions. This ability to reason about other's perceptions is not a singular achievement but, rather, one which occurs along a developmental continuum. The purpose of the present research was to examine the developmental nature of social loafing as a function of the social-cognitive ability for perspective-taking. In this study, 40 pre- schoolers (ages 3 to 5) were assessed on a physical output task (pumping up a balloon) in both individual and group performance conditions. Each child had been tested previously on standard Theory of Mind assessments. Stepwise regression analyses provided evidence of a clear developmental effect for social loafing as a function of children's ability to reason about other's knowledge and awareness regardless of chronological age. These results are consistent with a social-cognitive developmental model of social loafing.

Date received: September 7, 2003