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Entry for Need for Closure

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Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences
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Synonyms

Need for closure; Need for cognitive closure; Need for closure scale (NFCS)

Acronyms

NFC, NfCC, NCC

Definition

The need for closure construct is a dimension of individual differences related to a person’s motivation with respect to information processing and judgment. The need for cognitive closure has been defined as the “individual’s desire for a firm answer to a question, any firm answer, as opposed to confusion and/or ambiguity” (Kruglanski 2004, p. 6). The word “need” is used here “to denote a motivated tendency or proclivity rather than a tissue deficit” (Kruglanski and Webster 1996, p. 264).

Entry for Need for Closure

The need for closure (NFC) is conceived as a continuum with a strong NFC at one end and a strong need to avoid closure at the other. As such, it prompts a preference toward closure-bound pursuits; it induces negative affect when closure is denied and induces positive affect when it is attained. The following paragraphs will describe NFC consequences, the...

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References

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Correspondence to Ambra Brizi .

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Brizi, A. (2020). Entry for Need for Closure. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_1092

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