WhereRU Aresty Poster # 159 Social Facilitation by Aresty Posters 2009

Social Faclitation: A pilot Study
According to social facilitation theory, individuals completing simple, well-learned tasks in the presence of another will experience performance enhancement. Individuals completing a complex task in the presence of another will experience performance impairment. Emerging technologies, such as immersive virtual environments, allow individuals to interact in real time with avatars, or real-time virtual human representations. Current research suggests that there are similarities between the behavior of avatars and human beings. The present study investigates whether social facilitation patterns observed in real life extend to virtual environments. Results indicate individuals completing the task in the virtual environment felt greater degree of stress than those in the real life groups. Although we did not find results that supported our original hypotheses, these results highlight a necessity for future studies to explore issues regarding social interactions in immersive virtual environments.

Fariha Amer Saleem
Meelas110@gmail.com
732-447-3642
Dr John R Aiello-Social Organizational Psychology Lab