Cognitive Scaffold

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MENTAL MODEL · M4070

In-group Favoritism

In-group Favoritism
BehaviorHigh supportSocial Psychology
Included
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Updated 2026-08-01

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INTRODUCTION

English translation pending.

CORE DEFINITION

Established by Henri Tajfel and colleagues in the early 1970s through the minimal group paradigm. Participants assigned to groups by a trivial criterion, such as a preference for one painter over another, still allocated more resources to their own group despite never meeting its members and having no personal stake. The finding shows that mere categorisation, without real conflict or material interest, is enough to generate bias. Favouritism coexists with out-group derogation but is often the stronger of the two. It is the raw material of both cohesion and discrimination, which is why the same mechanism builds teams and excludes outsiders.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

- Boundary spotting: Map which categories are live in a room before you read anyone's allocation decisions. - Common identity: Build a superordinate group so the boundary moves outward and both sides share a stake. - Rule design: Fix allocation criteria in writing in advance to blunt discretionary favouritism.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

Social categorisation splits a continuous world into us and them, and self-esteem becomes tied to the standing of one's own category. Because the category is part of the self, helping it feels like helping oneself, and comparison with outsiders becomes a status contest. The bias therefore needs no material incentive, since the mere existence of a boundary supplies the motive. Interventions work by moving the boundary or by making allocation criteria explicit, leaving the automatic preference less room to operate.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Source support: Explicit

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    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In-group_favoritismZH · Explicit
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