Which of the following is an example of ingroup bias?

• A. An individual prefers to spend time alone rather than with any group.
• B. A sports fan believes their own team is superior and overlooks their team's mistakes while criticizing the opposing team.
• C. A manager selects employees for promotion based solely on their performance, not group affiliation.
• D. A person treats everyone equally regardless of group membership.

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the concept of ingroup bias. Ingroup bias refers to the tendency for individuals to favor and give preferential treatment to members of their own group over those in outgroups.
2. Step 2: Analyze each option to see if it reflects favoritism or preferential treatment toward one's own group compared to others.
3. Step 3: The first option describes preferring to be alone, which does not involve group favoritism, so it is not an example of ingroup bias.
4. Step 4: The second option describes a sports fan believing their own team is superior and overlooking their team's mistakes while criticizing the opposing team, which clearly shows favoritism toward their ingroup (their team) and negative bias against the outgroup (the opposing team). This matches the definition of ingroup bias.
5. Step 5: The third and fourth options describe fair or equal treatment regardless of group membership, which contradicts the idea of ingroup bias, so they are not examples of it.