Cited by 2,379Social and Intergroup PsychologyDeath Anxiety and Social ExclusionPsychology of Social Influence

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Motivated closing of the mind: “Seizing” and “freezing”

Kruglanski, Arie W., Webster, Donna M.·1996·Psychological Review

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Abstract

A theoretical framework is outlined in which the key construct is the need for (nonspecific) cognitive closure. The need for closure is a desire for definite knowledge on some issue. It represents a dimension of stable individual differences as well as a situationally evocable state. The need for closure has widely ramifying consequences for social-cognitive phenomena at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and group levels of analysis. Those consequences derive from 2 general tendencies, those of urgency and performance. The urgency tendency represents an individual's inclination to attain closure as soon as possible, and the permanence tendency represents an individual's inclination to maintain it for as long as possible. Empirical evidence for present theory attests to diverse need for closure effects on fundamental social psychological phenomena, including impression formation, stereotyping, attribution, persuasion, group decision making, and language use in intergroup contexts.

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Background
Features of Multifinality
Kruglanski, A. W., Köpetz, C., Bélanger, J. J., Chun, W. Y., Orehek, E., & Ayelet Fishbach, B. (2012) · Personality and Social Psychology Review · doi:10.1177/1088868312453087 · Cited by 99
“They found that individuals choosing among four pairs of (identical quality) socks exhibited a right position bias, but only where their need for closure was elevated by time pressure (Kruglanski, 2004; Kruglanski, Pierro, Mannetti, & DeGrada, 2006; Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
BackgroundSelf-citation
Homo Diplomaticus: Mixed-Method Evidence of Variation in Strategic Rationality
Rathbun, B. C., Kertzer, J. D., & Paradis, M. (2017) · International Organization · doi:10.1017/s0020818316000412 · Cited by 100
Suspicious spirits, flexible minds: when distrust enhances creativity
Mayer, J., & Mussweiler, T. (2011) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0024407 · Cited by 78
Autocracy Bias in Informal Groups Under Need for Closure
Pierro, A., Mannetti, L., Grada, E. D., Livi, S., & Kruglanski, A. W. (2003) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167203251191 · Cited by 105
“…opinion on the group affording quick closure consistent with the urgency felt by the high need for closure members to attain firm knowledge (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996), (b) a consensus autocratically based on the leader’s opinion may be more stable or permanent than one deriving…”
InfluentialSelf-citation
Delusions and decision-making style: Use of the Need for Closure Scale
Freeman, D., Garety, P., Kuipers, E., Colbert, S., Jolley, S., Fowler, D., Dunn, G., & Bebbington, P. (2006) · Behaviour Research and Therapy · doi:10.1016/j.brat.2005.09.002 · Cited by 98
“He views NFC as a motivated goal-driven process and defines it as ‘individuals’ desire for a firm answer to a question and an aversion toward ambiguity’ (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
Background
Citizens and Condemnation: Strategic Uses of International Human Rights Pressure in Authoritarian States
Gruffydd-Jones, J. J. (2018) · Comparative Political Studies · doi:10.1177/0010414018784066 · Cited by 98
“…has shown that people undergo ‘biased assimilation’ of new information in order to fit it to their partisan prior beliefs (Lord et al. 1979; Kruglanski & Webster 1996; Kunda 1990) and the prevalent beliefs of their social group (Taber & Lodge 2006; Bolsen et al. 2014; Druckman et al.…”
Background
Is Political Conservatism Synonymous With Authoritarianism?
Crowson, H. M., Thoma, S. J., & Hestevold, N. L. (2005) · The Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.3200/socp.145.5.571-592 · Cited by 98
“According to Kruglanski and Webster (1996), individuals exhibit reliable differences in their motivational tendencies to “seize on new information” where no prior knowledge is available and “freeze” on existing structures where one has knowledge already in place.”
BackgroundInfluential
Self-Concept Clarity and Religious Orientations: Prediction of Purpose in Life and Self-Esteem
Błażek, M., & Besta, T. (2010) · Journal of Religion and Health · doi:10.1007/s10943-010-9407-y · Cited by 112
Knowledge, Stakes, and Mistakes
Buckwalter, W., & Schaffer, J. (2013) · Noûs · doi:10.1111/nous.12017 · Cited by 96
“In this vein, Kruglanski & Mayseless (1987: 835; c.f. Mayseless & Kruglanski 1987; Kruglanski & Webster 1996) note that “heightened fear of invalidity was found to intensify the generation of alternative hypotheses.””
Background
Multicultural experiences reduce prejudice through personality shifts in Openness to Experience
Sparkman, D. J., Eidelman, S., & Blanchar, J. C. (2016) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2189 · Cited by 96
Is Sexism a Gender Issue? A Motivated Social Cognition Perspective on Men's and Women's Sexist Attitudes toward Own and Other Gender
Roets, A., Hiel, A. V., & Dhont, K. (2011) · European Journal of Personality · doi:10.1002/per.843 · Cited by 96
“According to Kruglanski and Webster (1996), the desire for closure affects (social) judgments, decisions and knowledge construction by promoting the inclination to seize quickly on closure and to freeze on, or protect, existing or previously acquired knowledge structures.”
BackgroundInfluential
Measuring organizational learning from errors: Development and validation of an integrated model and questionnaire
Putz, D., Schilling, J., Kluge, A., & Stangenberg, C. (2012) · Management Learning · doi:10.1177/1350507612444391 · Cited by 111
“Therefore, organizational factors that are likely to evoke and stimulate need for closure should be avoided (such as time pressure; for an overview see Kruglanski and Webster, 1996).”
Background
Religion, group threat and sacred values
Sheikh, H., Ginges, J., Coman, A., & Atran, S. (2012) · Judgment and Decision Making · doi:10.1017/s1930297500002965 · Cited by 96
“The expectation that need for closure would be associated with holding sacred values stems from the notion that people with a high need for closure are motivated by a preference for structure and a low tolerance of ambiguity (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
Background
On the Grammar of Politics—or Why Conservatives Prefer Nouns
Cichocka, A. K., Bilewicz, M., Jost, J. T., Marrouch, N., & Witkowska, M. (2016) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/pops.12327 · Cited by 94
“…SD 5 0.88), preference for order (a 5 .83, M 5 3.89, SD 5 1.07), and discomfort with ambiguity (a 5 .60, M 5 4.14, SD 5 0.84)—correspond to the freezing process described by Kruglanski and Webster (1996) and are referred to (collectively) as the “personal need for structure” (Neuberg et al., 1997).”
Influential
Creating shared reality in interpersonal and intergroup communication: the role of epistemic processes and their interplay
Echterhoff, G., & Higgins, E. T. (2017) · European Review of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/10463283.2017.1333315 · Cited by 97
“And this would be especially true for individuals who have a high need for closure (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
Background
Politics at the Mall: The Moral Foundations of Boycotts
Fernandes, D. V. D. H. (2020) · Journal of Public Policy & Marketing · doi:10.1177/0743915620943178 · Cited by 103
“…conservatives’ tendency to justify the system in power and the status quo (Jost, Nosek, and Gosling 2008); to hold more rigid cognitive styles (Kruglanski and Webster 1996) and have high uncertainty avoidance tendencies (Janoff-Bulman 2009; Jost et al. 2003); and to be more sensitive to…”
Background
Empowerment through Choice? A Critical Analysis of the Effects of Choice in Organizations
Chua, R. Y. J., & Iyengar, S. S. (2006) · Research in Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1016/s0191-3085(06)27002-3 · Cited by 94
Motivated cognition and fairness: Insights, integration, and creating a path forward.
Barclay, L. J., Bashshur, M. R., & Fortin, M. (2017) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/apl0000204 · Cited by 100
“Whereas directional motives are aimed at reaching a specific conclusion, nondirectional motives are often geared toward obtaining the most accurate conclusion possible (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
Background
Coping with uncertainty: police strategies for resilient decision-making and action implementation
van den Heuvel, C., Alison, L. J., & Power, N. (2012) · Cognition Technology & Work · doi:10.1007/s10111-012-0241-8 · Cited by 106
“Results showed that suppression was coupled with instances in which decisions were temporarily omitted; therefore, suppression of uncertainty ‘‘blocked’’ the team’s ability to identify and resolve crucial problems (Lipshitz and Strauss 1997) or led to a ‘‘seizing and freezing’’ of responses (Kruglanski and Webster 199…”
BackgroundResultInfluential
The Impact of Cognitive Styles on Authoritarianism Based Conservatism and Racism
Cornelis, I., & Hiel, A. V. (2006) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1207/s15324834basp2801_4 · Cited by 92
“Need for closure (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996; Webster & Kruglanski, 1994) is a pivotal construct in Kruglanski and Webster’s (1996) theory of lay epistemics and refers to the desire or need for any firm belief or answer as opposed to further ambiguity.”
Background
Biased Assimilation: Effects of Assumptions and Expectations on the Interpretation of New Evidence
Lord, C. G., & Taylor, C. A. (2009) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/j.1751-9004.2009.00203.x · Cited by 100

Authors: Kruglanski, A. W., & Webster, D. M.
Affiliations: University of Maryland, College Park (US)
ORCID: Kruglanski, Arie W.
Venue: Psychological Review
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Published: 1996-04
Volume: 103
Issue: 2
Pages: 263-283
ISSN: 0033-295X (ISSN-L)
1939-1471
DOI: 10.1037/0033-295x.103.2.263
OpenAlex: W1994106556
Cited by: 2,379
References: 87
Citations by year: 2026: 105 · 2025: 104 · 2024: 75 · 2023: 78 · 2022: 110 · 2021: 130 · 2020: 150 · 2019: 96 · 2018: 135 · 2017: 107 · 2016: 98 · 2015: 92 · 2014: 107 · 2013: 88 · 2012: 108
FWCI: 80.97
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Locations: Psychological Review (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders: National Institutes of Health (5r01mh052578-05, 5k05mh001213-03)
National Institute of Mental Health (1R01 MH 52578, KO5/MH01213)
Topics: Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychology of Social Influence
Keywords: need for closure, cognitive closure, impression formation, stereotyping, attribution, persuasion, group decision making, individual differences, social cognition
MeSH terms: Cognition, Decision Making, Humans, Intelligence, Language, Personality

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Motivated closing of the mind: “Seizing” and “freezing”

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