The use of resistant cultivars is one of the best methods for nematode control and reduction of economic losses caused by these pathogens. Studies of inheritance of nematode resistance in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) are nonetheless scarce. The present paper reports on the estimation of genetic parameters associated with resistance to the root nematode Meloidogyne incognita race 1 in common beans. Two contrasting bean lines, ‘Aporé’ (P1 = nematode resistant) e ‘Macarrão Rasteiro Conquista’ (P2 = susceptible), and the generations F1 (P1 × P2), F2 (P1 × P2), BC1(P1) = (F1 × P1) and BC1(P2) = (F1 × P2), were assessed 45 days after nematode inoculation, through a scale related to the number of eggs per gram of root tissue. Dominant genetic effects were inferior in magnitude to additive effects, indicating incomplete dominance of nematode resistance. Dominance was in the direction of increased nematode resistance (i.e., lower number of eggs per g root). Resistance to Meloidogyne incognita race 1 in common bean is under control of a single gene locus, with incomplete dominance of the resistance allele present in ‘Aporé’, but modifier genes affecting its expression appear to be present in the susceptible parent ‘Macarrão Rasteiro Conquista’.