1. psychlotron.org.uk Today’s session You will learn aboutContext Using psychology to analyse behaviour Using models and theories to predict and explain what people do Social facilitation Arousal and task performance Dominant and non- dominant responses

2. psychlotron.org.uk The evidence so far: Three studies of social facilitation: Triplett (1898) Zajonc et al (1969) Michaels et al (1982) What do these studies tell us about the effects of an audience/co-actors?

3. psychlotron.org.uk Physiological arousal How energised, alert or ready for action a person is

4. psychlotron.org.uk Arousal & task performance The Yerkes-Dodson curve What does this graph tell us about the relationship between a person’s level of arousal and their ability to do a task? arousal level performance

5. psychlotron.org.uk Arousal & task performance Task performance Arousal level B’groundAdditionalAudience worse better lower higher

6. psychlotron.org.uk Dominant responses Dominant response Very well-learned & thoroughly practised ‘automatic’ behaviours Increased arousal makes performance better Non- dominant response Less well learned behaviours, requiring more conscious control Increased arousal makes performance worse

7. psychlotron.org.uk Can we use the idea of dominant and non- dominant responses to explain the findings of Zajonc et al (1969) and Michaels et al (1982)?

8. psychlotron.org.uk Dominant responses Zajonc et al (1969) Non-dominant response (turning corners) inhibited by audience Michaels et al (1982)Experts’ pool skills (dominant response) improved, novices’ pool skills (non-dominant) deteriorated

9. psychlotron.org.uk Why does the presence of others as audience/co-actors increase a person’s arousal level?

10. psychlotron.org.uk Three possibilities Mere presence (‘they just do’) Increased arousal is a pre-programmed, biological response to others Evaluation apprehension We get worried about how we appear to other people Distraction Other people distract us, which causes conflict/stress

11. psychlotron.org.uk A model of task performance Task performance Arousal level during task Dominance of response Other? Stress / Emotion Audience / Co-actors How recently learned? How well practiced?