Final answer:
Social loafing describes a decrease in individual effort and accountability when working in a group because individual contributions are not directly evaluated. It is distinct from groupthink, although both can negatively affect group dynamics and decision-making. Measures such as individual assessments can mitigate social loafing.
Step-by-step explanation:
Social loafing occurs when the presence of others causes individuals to relax their standards. It specifically involves a reduction in individual output on tasks where contributions are pooled, leading to a decrease in motivation since individual efforts are not directly evaluated. This phenomenon is largely due to a lack of accountability and occurs often in group settings, such as classroom group projects or collaborative work environments.
In contrast to social loafing, phenomena such as groupthink and conformity effect may lead to overly cohesive group decisions and the modification of individual opinions to match perceived group consensus, respectively. Moreover, it's noteworthy that situations involving deindividuation or the exertion of less effort can affect individual behavior in different ways, depending on the context and nature of the task at hand.
Social loafing is least likely to occur when individual contributions can be identified and assessed, for instance, when an instructor evaluates each member's input in an academic project or a manager reviews each employee's work in a professional setting.