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facilitation or social interference will impact the outcome of the task. If social facilitation occurs,

the task will have required a dominant response from the individual resulting in better performance

in the presence of others, whereas if social interference occurs the task will have elicited a

nondominant response from the individual resulting in subpar performance of the task. (Forsyth,

2009)

Several theories analysing performance gains in groups via drive, motivational, cognitive

and personality processes, explain why social facilitation occurs.

Zajonc hypothesized that compresence (the state of responding in the presence of others)

elevates an individual's drive level which in turn triggers social facilitation when tasks are simple

and easy to execute, but impedes performance when tasks are challenging. (Forsyth, 2009)

Nickolas Cottrell, 1972, proposed the evaluation apprehension model whereby he

suggested people associate social situations with an evaluative process. Cottrell argued this

situation is met with apprehension and it is this motivational response, not arousal/elevated drive,

that is responsible for increased productivity on simple tasks and decreased productivity on

complex tasks in the presence of others. (Forsyth, 2009)

In The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life (1959), Erving Goffman assumes that

individuals can control how they are perceived by others. He suggests that people fear being

perceived as having negative, undesirable qualities and characteristics by other people, and that it

is this fear that compels individuals to portray a positive self-presentation/social image of

themselves. In relation to performance gains, Goffman's self-presentation theory predicts, in

situations where they may be evaluated, individuals will consequently increase their efforts in

order to project/preserve/maintain a positive image. (Forsyth, 2009)

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