Social psychology has developed as a discipline through the systematic study of how individuals think, feel, and behave in relation to other people and social situations. Although the formal discipline emerged in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, its intellectual roots can be traced to philosophy, sociology, and early studies of human nature. Thinkers such as Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, and Rousseau discussed social influence, human relationships, group life, and the relationship between individuals and society. However, these early discussions were largely philosophical rather than scientific. The scientific foundation of social psychology began to develop during the nineteenth century with the growth of experimental psychology and sociology. Scholars became increasingly interested in understanding how the presence of others affects individual behaviour. In 1898, Norman Triplett conducted one of the earliest social psychological experiments. He observed that cyclists often performed better when competing with others than when cycling alone. This study is regarded as an important landmark in the experimental study of social behaviour and later contributed to the concept of social facilitation. The early twentieth century witnessed the emergence of social psychology as an independent field. In 1908, William McDougall published “An Introduction to Social Psychology,” while Edward Alsworth Ross published “Social Psychology.” McDougall emphasized instincts as