Exploring the experiences of social loafing in group work among online psychology students

Abstract

Social loafing, the tendency for individuals to put in less effort when working in a group compared to working alone, is amplified by various challenges in online learning environments. These challenges include maintaining engagement, reduced task visibility, and the physical distance created by technology, all of which can encourage some group members to contribute less. The absence of face-to-face interaction can lead to feelings of isolation and reduced accountability, further complicating group dynamics. Through a qualitative approach, this research explores how online psychology students perceive and experience social loafing during group assessments. Semi-structured focus groups with nine participants from a Graduate Diploma of Psychology program were conducted to co-create possible solutions to social loafing in online group assessments. Using Reflexive Thematic Analysis, four themes were developed. These themes reflect students’ interest in co-creating solutions that suit an online (mostly asynchronous) context. Students recommended alternative channels to communication (such as social media) as learning technologies native to the LMS can create barriers to engagement. Students prefer to reduce the weighting of group grade and balance their grade against their individual contribution. Evaluative judgement training is needed to improve peer assessment of group contributions. Online students require more investment/facilitation in the group introduction stage, as their competing demands mean they are less able to synchronously meet.