Journal of Social and Industrial Psychology
Vol. 14 No. 1 (2025): Journal of Social and Industrial Psychology

When Teams Become a Burden: A Study of Social Laziness and Work Productivity in Production Employees

Rizqisyah, Ariq (Unknown)
Rinaldi, Martaria Rizky (Unknown)



Article Info

Publish Date
29 Jul 2025

Abstract

Work productivity is a key indicator in achieving organizational goals, particularly in group-based work that requires active individual contributions. One challenge that can hinder productivity is social loafing, a tendency for individuals to exert less effort when working in groups than when working alone. This study aimed to examine the relationship between social loafing behavior and employee productivity. A quantitative approach with a non-experimental correlational design was employed. The study involved 94 production employees selected through purposive sampling, based on criteria: active employment status, a minimum of six months of work experience, and current involvement in team-based tasks. Data were collected using two psychological scales developed based on the theories of Chidambaram & Tung (social loafing) and Simamora (work productivity). Data analysis was conducted using Pearson correlation to examine the relationship between variables. The results indicated that the hypothesis was accepted, revealing a significant negative correlation between social loafing and work productivity (r = -0.628; p = 0.000). The coefficient of determination showed that social loafing accounted for 39.4% of the variance in employee productivity. The study concludes that higher levels of social loafing are associated with lower levels of work productivity. These findings underscore the importance of implementing individual-level evaluations within group work to reduce the emergence of social loafing and enhance accountability. This study contributes to the literature by expanding the examination of social loafing into real-world organizational settings, specifically among production employees in Indonesia, and provides practical insights for designing team structures that promote individual accountability.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

sip

Publisher

Subject

Other

Description

Journal of Social and Industrial Psychology provides a forum for cutting-edge, peer reviewed research in all fields related to investigations into the ways in which the individual can balance their daily activities (socially, culturally or linguistically) against the larger context of corporate, ...