Social facilitation is a psychological phenomenon where people perform better or worse on a task because they are being watched or are in the presence of other people (Allport, 1924). The concept of social facilitation was first introduced in 1924 by psychologist Gordon Allport, who noticed that people tended to perform better on simple tasks when they were in the presence of others doing the same task. He called this phenomenon “social facilitation” because the presence of others seemed to facilitate or improve performance.
One of the most famous early studies on social facilitation was conducted in 1898 by psychologist Norman Triplett. He observed that cyclists who were accompanied by pacemakers were able to ride faster than those who rode alone. He concluded that the presence of others increased the competitive instinct, which resulted in better performance.
Since then, many researchers have tried to explain why social facilitation occurs and how it affects performance. One popular theory was proposed by psychologist Robert Zajonc in 1965. He suggested that the presence of others causes a nonspecific increase in activation or arousal, which prepares the body to respond to any potential unexpected actions by others. This increased arousal level can lead to improved performance on simple tasks, but can actually hurt performance on more complex or difficult tasks.
Other researchers have proposed alternative explanations for social facilitation, such as evaluation apprehension (fear of being judged), alertness and monitoring processes, attentional processes, or self-presentation processes (Strauss, 2002).
Allport, F. H. (1924). Social psychology. New York: Houghton Mifflin.
Strauss, B. (2002). Social facilitation in motor tasks: A review of research and theory. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 3, 237256.
Triplett, N. (1898). The dynamogenic factors in pacemaking and competition. American Journal of Psychology, 9, 507533.
Zajonc, R. B. (1965). Social facilitation. Science, 149, 269274.
