Suppose that some people have just been randomly assigned to two different teams. Research suggests that these people would be likely to exhibit discriminatory behavior (favoring the ingroup, and disfavoring the outgroup) ____.

A) immediately, as soon as the groups had been defined
B) as soon as their ingroup became an important part of their personal identity
C) only after the two teams had engaged in direct competition
D) only after they had bonded with their ingroup by enduring a shared hardship

Discriminatory Behavior

Actions or attitudes that unfairly differentiate or exclude individuals based on personal characteristics, such as race, gender, or age.

Ingroup

A social group to which a person psychologically identifies as being a member, often used to describe groups formed based on shared interests or identities.

Outgroup

An outgroup is a social group to which an individual does not belong or identify, often leading to prejudice or discrimination against its members by those within the ingroup.