Social compensation

Social compensation is considered the complement of social loafing, and refers to when individuals work harder and expend more effort in a group setting - to compensate for other group members - compared to when working alone. Social compensation is consistent with the expectancy-value formulations of effort theory. Williams and Karau first documented the social compensation hypothesis. The social compensation hypothesis states that there are two factors under which social compensation may occur: the expectation that other group members will perform insufficiently and if the group product is important to the individual. More specifically, the hypothesis states that if a group member is perceived to perform insufficiently either due to trust, reliability, or direct knowledge, or if an individual perceives a task or product as personally meaningful, then an individual may contribute more towards the collective product in order to avoid an inadequate performance. Social loafing is considered the complement of social compensation.