Seeing the Political Other in a Different Light: How Stereotype Domains Change Intergroup Perceptions

Political stereotypes are central to how citizens imagine political opponents, yet their implications for democratic conflict remain understudied. Building on work distinguishing three stereotype domains (traits, social groups, and ideas), we test whether stereotype content shapes affective evaluations and related cognitive mechanisms. In a preregistered survey experiment in the Netherlands (N=1,693), respondents described voters of their least-liked party using one of these domains. Stereotype domains did not meaningfully change affect, but social group prompts reduced perceived out-group homogeneity and increased cross-cutting perceptions. Exploratory analyses further suggest domain effects may depend on the specific partisan relationship in a multiparty context. These findings highlight the importance of distinguishing cognitive and affective pathways in the study of political polarization.