The developmental origins of coalitional motives: Gendered preferences for group formidability manifest among preschoolers and undergird political ideology among adults

Empirical research confirms that, across cultures, adult males hold greater motives for group dominance than females, and that these motives are in turn associated with intergroup hostility and willingness to participate in violent intergroup conflict. However, it remains unknown how and when these gendered coalitional motives emerge during development. Here we test whether infants (N = 180) and young children (N = 317) themselves prefer being part of a larger, more formidable coalition, and if any such coalitional motives are greater among male children, as is the case among adults. We show that beginning in early childhood, preschool boys, but not girls, prefer an agent belonging to a larger over a smaller group of novel agents. Employing similar minimal group depictions, majority-group adults (N = 1991) who preferred more formidable groups, were more likely to endorse pro-hierarchy attitudes and ideology. This suggests that gendered individual differences in basic group formidability motives undergird adult political ideology and have roots in early childhood when children start navigating peer relationships.