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Motivated closing of the mind: “Seizing” and “freezing”
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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“the default mindset of most adults is a relatively inactive state where the past unduly influences the present (e.g., Hart et al., 2009; Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
From Psychological flexibility as a fundamental aspect of health (2010) · cites this paper as Kruglanski & Webster, 1996
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“…high NFC will tend to “seize” on the first suitable piece of information that presents itself, and “freeze” at this point, discounting or ignoring any further relevant information that is provided that might challenge the permanence of the currently attained closure (Kruglanski and Webster, 1996).”
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“…need for closure desires immediate closure (the urgency tendency to seize) and then desires to remain in a state of closure (the permanence tendency to freeze; Kruglanski & Freund, 1983; Kruglanski & Webster, 1996), and they feel distressed when not in a state of closure (Roets & Van Hiel, 2008).”
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“…desire to have firm answers to questions, and in the degree to which they have an aversion of ambiguity (i.e., need for cognitive closure [NFC]; Kruglanski & Webster, 1996), and that individuals with high NFC do not expose themselves to information that is incongruent with their previously…”
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“However, contrary to dispositional NFC, these manipulations yield a “dual effect” because they not only affect motivation but also deplete individuals’ cognitive resources (e.g., Kruglanski & Webster, 1996; Roets, van Hiel, & Cornelis, 2008).”
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“10 In his words, closure is ‘‘the juncture at which a belief crystallizes and turns from hesitant conjecture to a subjectively firm ‘fact’’’ (Kruglanski and Webster 1996: 266).”
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“…Golimbet, Alfimova, Gritsenko, & Ebstein, 2007; Tomitaka et al., 1999), but certain environmental variables may contribute to a cognitive–motivational disposition toward the social world that is either closed and invariant or open and exploratory (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996; Settle et al., 2010).”
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“…significance tests.4 But where confirmation biases often involve a “need for specific closure” (a need for one particular answer), capitalization on chance often involves a “need for non‐specific closure” – a desire to find something interesting, whatever it may be (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
BackgroundVariation in students' propensities for managing uncertainty
Jordan, M. E. (2015) · Learning and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2015.01.005 · Cited by 31
Searching for Moral Dumbfounding: Identifying Measurable Indicators of Moral Dumbfounding
McHugh, C., McGann, M., Igou, E. R., & Kinsella, E. L. (2017) · Collabra Psychology · doi:10.1525/collabra.79 · Cited by 33
Lin, C., & Huang, T. Y. (2022) · Management Decision · doi:10.1108/md-08-2021-1065 · Cited by 29
Naïve definitions of action and inaction: The continuum, spread, and valence of behaviors
McCulloch, K. C., Li, H., Hong, S., & Albarracín, D. (2011) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.860 · Cited by 31
“We used a 42-item measure of differences in the desires for a definite cognitive closure versus ambiguity (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
MethodDeliberative Democracy and "Human Nature": An Empirical Approach
Reykowski, J. (2006) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9221.2006.00516.x · Cited by 29
On the Risks of Recycling Because of Guilt: An Examination of the Consequences of Introjection1
Koestner, R., Houlfort, N., Paquet, S., & Knight, C. (2001) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2001.tb00190.x · Cited by 29
1 Motivation and Judicial Behavior: Expanding the Scope of Inquiry
Baum, L. (2010) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195367584.003.0001 · Cited by 31
Consumer Response to Authentic-Language Versus English-Language Menu Labeling in Ethnic Dining
Choi, S., Liu, S. Q., & Mattila, A. S. (2017) · Cornell Hospitality Quarterly · doi:10.1177/1938965517730314 · Cited by 29
“There are two important behavioral tendencies of NFCC, namely, “seizing” and “freezing” (Kruglanski & Webster, 1996; Kruglanski, Webster, & Klem, 1993; Webster & Kruglanski, 1994).”
BackgroundConspiracy Theories in Post-Soviet Russia
Yablokov, I. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0024 · Cited by 33
Evidence integration and decision confidence are modulated by stimulus consistency
Glickman, M., Moran, R., & Usher, M. (2022) · Nature Human Behaviour · doi:10.1038/s41562-022-01318-6 · Cited by 36
“Future studies could also beneficially examine whether and how consistency bias is related to a broad range of individual traits such as the need for cognitive closure 63 , political radicalism 57 and dogmatism 64 , or to psychiatric conditions such as obsessive compulsive disorder 65 .”
BackgroundSubliminal anchoring: The effects of subliminally presented numbers on probability estimates
Rooijen, M. R.-V., & Daamen, D. D. L. (2005) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2005.05.001 · Cited by 29
When Government Confidence Undermines Public Involvement in Modern Disasters
Shepherd, S., & Kay, A. C. (2014) · Social Cognition · doi:10.1521/soco.2014.32.3.206 · Cited by 28
de Zavala, A. G., Federico, C. M., Cisłak, A., & Sigger, J. (2007) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.438 · Cited by 28
“We argue that both of these processes are affected by individual differences in the need for cognitive closure—or the degree to which one is motivated to seek out, possess, and rely on knowledge that is clear, unambiguous, and stable (Kruglanski, 2004; Kruglanski & Webster, 1996).”
BackgroundControversy awareness on evidence-led discussions as guidance for students in wiki-based learning
Heimbuch, S., & Bodemer, D. (2016) · The Internet and Higher Education · doi:10.1016/j.iheduc.2016.12.001 · Cited by 34
Authoritarianism, Affective Polarization, and Economic Ideology
Johnston, C. D. (2018) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/pops.12483 · Cited by 30
The principle of consistency and the cause and function of behaviour
KAMPEN, H. S. V. (2018) · Behavioural Processes · doi:10.1016/j.beproc.2018.12.013 · Cited by 34
Metadata
- Authors
- Kruglanski, A. W., & Webster, D. M.
- Affiliations
- University of Maryland, College Park (US)
- ORCID
- Kruglanski, Arie W.
- Venue
- Psychological Review
- Published
- 1996-04
- Volume
- 103
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 263-283
- ISSN
- 0033-295X (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1471
- 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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