Riya's school wins an inter-school quiz. Her friends describe their own schoolmates as smart and friendly, and the students of the rival school as show-offs. Which of the following statements about this situation are correct?
(A) Riya's friends use the word 'we' for their own school, which is their ingroup.
(B) The rival school is an outgroup for Riya's friends.
(C) Seeing the rival students negatively shows that ingroup and outgroup categories are real and fixed.
(D) Seeing their own schoolmates as similar and having desirable traits is typical of ingroup perception.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → A, B and D only
(A) Riya's friends use the word 'we' for their own school, which is their ingroup. — Correct. The ingroup is one's own group, and its members are spoken of as 'we'. Riya's friends are talking about their own school.
(B) The rival school is an outgroup for Riya's friends. — Correct. The outgroup is another group, one we do not belong to, and its members are called 'they'. The rival school fits this.
(C) Seeing the rival students negatively shows that ingroup and outgroup categories are real and fixed. — Incorrect. Members of the outgroup are often seen negatively, but these categories are not real; they are created by us. So the view does not prove the groups are real or fixed.
(D) Seeing their own schoolmates as similar and having desirable traits is typical of ingroup perception. — Correct. Ingroup members are generally supposed to be similar, viewed favourably and have desirable traits. Calling schoolmates smart and friendly shows this.
NCERT (2026-27): “Ingroup and Outgroup “Box 7.2 differently and are often perceived negatively in comparison to the ingroup members. …” “Although it is common to make these categorisations, it should be appreciated that these categories are not real and are created by us. …” |