Social loafing refers to the relaxation that results when people are in a Group and their individual performance cannot be evaluated; this relaxation impairs performance on simple tasks, but enhances performance on complex tasks. It is when a person does not do something because there are other people present.
Social loafing is also defined in various ways:
1. the decrease in individual effort that sometimes occurs when other people are present and when group performance is measured.
2. the reduction of effort that people often exhibit when working in a group where individual contributions are unidentifiable
3. The tendency of people to work less hard when part of a group than when they are solely responsible for their work.
4. The fact that individuals in a group often exert less individual effort than they would if they were not in a group.