subtasks and the most capable members should be given the more difficult subtasks, if productivity is to be maximized. The Kohler Effect No one wants to be the weakest link of any group. As a result, weaker individuals in the group respond to this by expending more effort than they would had they been working alone. This is known as the Kohler effect, where performance gains are seen in weaker individuals who are striving to keep up with the accomplishments of other group members. The effect is named after Otto Kohler, who discovered in 1926 that weaker members of the group would strive to keep up with the accomplishments of others in that group, leading to greater performance of these weaker members. Individuals who perform inferior work compared to someone else show improvement relative to those deprived of this comparison. Moreover, this gain is even more marked when they are part of a group working on a conjunctive task. A recent meta-analysis of related studies has confirmed the presence of the Köhler effect, and has noted that it seems to be stronger in women than men The Kohler effect is seen more when IGMs are involved in face-to-face groups. There is also more improvement from IGMs when information is readily available concerning the performance quality of others. While continuous feedback is not necessary to produce the effect, the removal of all feedback eliminates the Kohler effect, such that one does not know whether they are the IGM or not. Delaying or restricting feedback to after the task is complete, and no more than identifying the superior or inferior member, reduces the effect but does not eliminate it. The greater presence of the Kohler effect in conjunctive tasks than additive or co-action suggests that the instrumentality of completing the task or subtask is more likely driving the effect than social comparison processes. Applications of the Kohler Effect The Kohler Effect has been studied and applied to many different areas, including extensive application to athletics and group exercise. The Kohler effect has been demonstrated in swimming and track and field athletes, such that inferior group members showed the greatest motivational gains compared to their more highly performing teammates. Inferior athletes showed the greatest performance gains between preliminary and final races. Weaker athletes also showed more performance improvement when going from individual to group competition than did middle-ranked or higher-ranked teammates. Exercise with