Abstract
Adults manifest a number of attributional biases in explaining the behavior of in‐ versus out‐group members. The present study investigated the developmental origins of such biased explanation. Children from majority and minority populations in Israel, and from majority populations in Germany (N = 165), were asked to explain the behavior of in‐ and out‐group members. Across ages and groups, children more often referred to group membership when explaining an out‐group as compared to an in‐group member’s behavior; and more often to individual factors when explaining an in‐group as compared to an out‐group member’s behavior. These findings are consistent with the early emergence of fundamental differences in the conceptualizations of in‐ and out‐group members.