Identify a correct explanation for the occurrence of social loafing:

The correct answer is Option (1) → Group members feel less responsible for the overall task being performed and therefore exert less effort.

Option (1) Group members feel less responsible for the overall task being performed and therefore exert less effort. — Correct. Social loafing is a reduction in individual effort when people work on a collective task whose outputs are pooled, as in tug-of-war. Since no one can tell how much each member contributed, responsibility is spread over the group, and members relax and become free riders.

Option (2) Motivation of the members increases because they realise that their contribution will be evaluated on individual basis. — Incorrect. This is the remedy for social loafing, not its cause. Loafing happens because individual effort cannot be identified; making each contribution identifiable reduces it.

Option (3) There is proper coordination among group members. — Incorrect. Good coordination helps a group perform better; it does not explain why members put in less effort.

Option (4) Belonging to the same group is important for the members. — Incorrect. When the group matters to its members, their commitment rises, which works against loafing.