The moralized coalitions model: How coalitional thinking and moralization shape social perception.

= 2,226), we provide initial evidence consistent with this framework. Study 1 shows that individuals treat political party as highly informative about others despite its limited predictive value, suggesting reliance on coalitional inference. Study 2 demonstrates that coalitional descriptors can be distinguished from traits and that partisan groups agree more on coalition-based stereotypes than on trait-based stereotypes. Study 3 shows that participants spontaneously described partisans in largely coalitional terms. In an evaluative judgment study (Study 4) and an experimental manipulation of coalitional strength (Study 5), perceived associations between parties and groups shaped evaluations of those groups. Moralization of partisanship amplified these effects, especially for outparty-associated groups. Study 5 further suggests that these effects operate primarily through perceived alignment (e.g., support and affiliation), rather than perceived trait similarity. Together, these findings suggest that perceived coalitional alignment plays a role in social evaluation alongside traits and beliefs. More broadly, the moralized coalitions model highlights how perceived group structure and moralization jointly contribute to moralized intergroup conflict. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).