The behavioural component of prejudice is called _______.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Discrimination
Option (1) Stereotype — Incorrect. A stereotype is a cluster of ideas about the characteristics of a specific group, assumed to be true of all its members. It is the cognitive component of prejudice, a matter of belief, not of action.
Option (2) Attitude — Incorrect. An attitude is a state of the mind, a set of views about an attitude object with an evaluative feature, an emotional component and a tendency to act. Prejudice is itself a negative attitude; attitude is the whole, not its behavioural part.
Option (3) Discrimination — Correct. The cognitive component of prejudice (the stereotype) is often accompanied by dislike or hatred, the affective component. Prejudice may also get translated into discrimination, the behavioural component, whereby people behave in a less positive way towards a particular target group compared to another group which they favour.
Option (4) Kernel of Truth — Incorrect. The kernel of truth concept is a reason why people keep their stereotypes: they think there must be some truth in what everyone says about the other group. It is a source of prejudice, not its behavioural component.
Note: A similar question was also asked in CUET (UG) 2023 on 15-06-2023 (Slot 3).
NCERT (2025-26): “Prejudice and Discrimination … Often, stereotypes consist of undesirable characteristics about the target group, and they lead to negative attitudes or prejudices towards members of specific groups. The cognitive component of prejudice is frequently accompanied by dislike or hatred, the affective component. Prejudice may also get translated into discrimination, the behavioural component, whereby people behave in a less positive way towards a particular target group compared to another group which they favour.…” |