Beyond dogmatism: The need for closure as related to religion

Our theoretical assumption is that behind the dogmatism-religion positive but not systematic relation, a clearer one may exist between religion and need for closure (Webster & Kruglanski, 1994). A positive association of religiosity with need for closure was hypothesized (except with the decisiveness facet). Subjects ( n = 239) were administered the Need for Closure Scale (NFCS), the Religious Fundamentalism Scale and a two-dimensional religiosity scale. Religious fundamentalism was positively correlated with the total NFCS, preference for order and predictability. Classic religiosity predicted high need for closure (all facets except decisiveness). However, spirituality-emotional religion was associated with low close-mindedness and low decisiveness but still high discomfort with ambiguity. Discussion includes arguments favouring the usefulness of the need for closure construct for understanding many aspects of religious personality (e.g. dogmatism, authoritarianism, prejudice, multiple conversions, distinction between permanence in order-closure and urgency for closure).     

认知需求和认知闭合需求对风险决策中外语效应的影响

外语效应指相比于母语背景,个体在外语背景下风险决策偏差会降低。针对影响外语效应的因素研究大多聚焦于外部因素和与个体外语水平相关的因素,少有研究探讨认知风格的作用。本研究通过524名成人被试,探索认知需求和认知闭合需求对外语效应的影响。结果表明:(1)风险决策中存在外语效应,相比于母语背景,外语背景下框架效应被削弱,且个体更偏向风险寻求。(2)对于认知需求和认知闭合需求都高或都低的个体,语言类型会影响风险决策,在母语环境下倾向于风险规避,在外语环境下倾向于风险寻求;而对于认知需求和认知闭合需求高低不一致的个体,语言类型对其风险决策倾向的影响不显著。本研究为认知风格如何综合影响风险决策提供了进一步的证据。     

Need for closure and youths' leisure time preferences

The Need for Closure is an individual characteristic which may help explain individual differences in engagement in leisure activities. Both a leisure engagement inventory and a validated Dutch version of the Need for Closure Scale were administered to a convenient sample of 1,035 young adults ages 15 to 24 years of whom 552 were female. Leisure engagement was hypothesized to differ for groups differing in Need for Closure. More specifically, youngsters who score high (versus low) on Need for Closure engaged more in structured, cognitively effortless, and predictable leisure activities like shopping for fun and going to the cinema, while young adults scoring low (versus high) on Need for Closure more often participated in unstructured, unpredictable, cognitively effortful or challenging leisure activities like going to a party, a pub, or a pop concert, idly lazing away, visiting or hosting friends, attending an evening class and playing computer games.     

Separating ability from need: clarifying the dimensional structure of the Need for Closure Scale

The validity of the Need for Closure Scale (NFCS) has recently been debated in the research literature. In the present study, it is argued that the traditional Decisiveness scale primarily taps ability content instead of the hypothesized motivational need; therefore, new items that explicitly probe the need for quick and unambiguous answers were developed. It was shown that these need items form a reliable scale (Study 1); were predictive of the seizing process over and beyond ability, whereas the old Decisiveness scale was not (Study 2); and were sensitive to experimentally manipulated levels of task motivation (Study 3). Finally, a reassembled NFCS with the new items replacing the traditional Decisiveness items showed superior fit as a unidimensional model. In the Discussion, it is argued that the specific position of Decisiveness is due to its particular operationalization, not to its theoretical status.     

Assessing the Dimensionality and Other Psychometric Properties of a Greek Translation of the Sex-role Egalitarianism Scale (Form B)

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the dimensionality of a Greek-language version of the Sex Role Egalitarianism Scale—Form B (SRES-B) via confirmatory factor analysis. Using two different samples (undergraduates and community sample from Greece) data from 667 individuals were collected. Three models were specified: the five-factor model (marital, parental, social–interpersonal–heterosexual, employment, and educational roles); the two-factor model (Intimate and Formal); and the single-factor model (Global factor). The findings indicated that the two-factor model had the best fit. The corresponding alpha coefficients were .94 and .92 respectively, with .96 for the total scale. Results also showed that women, young individuals, well educated persons, and people residing in cities were more egalitarian. No differences between the two samples were found.     

Spanish adaptation of the Need for Closure Scale

The Need for Cognitive Closure (NCC) refers to the motivation to seek and maintain a definitive answer to a given problem. This mental closure allows people to avoid confusion, ambiguity and uncertainty. The NCC plays a critical role in a variety of processes of diverse nature, including intra-personal (e.g., the higher the NCC, the less generation of hypothesis), inter-personal (e.g., decreased empathy), intra-group (e.g., increased desire for consensus), and inter-group (increased in-group favouritism) phenomena. The goal of the present research was to provide a Spanish adaptation of Antonio Pierro and Arie Kruglanski's Revised NCC Scale (2005, Rev NfCS), examining the reliability and the validity of participants' scores. In the present studies, it was found that the Spanish version of the scale had acceptable internal reliability and adequate factor structure (Study 1), as well as acceptable test-retest reliability and adequate discriminant validity with regard to the scores in another measure of individual differences such as the Need for Cognition (NC, Study 2).     

Factor structure of the new environmental paradigm scale: evidence from an urban sample in southern California

This study examined the factor structure of the New Environmental Paradigm Scale using responses from 261 urban subjects from southern California. The analysis yielded findings inconsistent with many previous studies of the original scale. This study supported an 8-item two-factor model of the scale rather than the one-factor and three-factor models proposed earlier. A subsequent validation study provides evidence for this short form's validity, as the two factors were predictive of commitment to preservation of nature.     

The structure of the State Hope Scale

The present research aimed to examine the factorial structure of the State Hope Scale (SHS). In Study 1, using confirmatory factorial analyses, two factorial structures were contrasted: a single-factor mode (representing a general hope construct) and a second-order factor model (with general hope characterized by agency and pathways). Results revealed that the two-factor model was more likely to be replicated. Furthermore, invariance analyses revealed that the two-factor structure applied equally across age groups and gender. In Study 2, the factorial structure of the SHS was evaluated again. Once more, results confirmed the superiority of the two-factor model. In addition, hope was positively linked to mental health.     

Anxiety and Depression in Children and Adolescents: A Factor-Analytic Examination of the Tripartite Model

The tripartite model of Clark and Watson (1981) suggests that the oft-observed covariation between anxiety and depression can best be understood by examining three related yet distinct constructs: negative affectivity, positive affectivity, and elevated physiological arousal. In the present study, 510 boys and girls in the 4th, 7th, and 10th grades completed the Children's Depression Inventory and the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to determine the goodness of fit of single-factor (i.e., negative affectivity), two-factor (i.e., anxiety and depression), and three-factor models (i.e., negative affectivity, positive affectivity, and physiological arousal). Analyses were conducted by examining each of the models in the whole sample first and then separately for boys and girls and for fourth, seventh, and tenth grade youths. Results failed to support the tripartite theory; rather, the findings supported a two-factor model in all cases. These factors represented the general constructs of anxiety and depression, and these factors remained significantly interrelated. Consistent with previous findings, the strength of these relations was stronger for boys than girls and for children than adolescents.     

The Relationship Between Need for Closure and Conservative Beliefs in Western and Eastern Europe

This work explored the hypothesis that need for closure is associated with the adoption of conservative ideology. Two different studies on eastern and western European samples (Polish and Flemish) supported the hypothesis that need for closure—as measured by Webster and Kruglanski's (1994 ) Need for Closure Scale—is related to conservative beliefs. However, in the second study, a negative relationship between need for closure and economic conservatism in the Polish sample was noted, whereas a positive relationship occurred in the Flemish sample. These results may be accounted for by the Need for Simple Structure factor of Neuberg, Judice, and West (1997 ) and by specific rather than non-specific epistemic processes.     

Cognitive motivation correlates of coping style in decisional conflict

Can personality traits account for the handling of internal conflicts? The authors explored how individual differences in information-processing style affect coping patterns displayed before making important decisions. Need for cognition and need for cognitive closure were linked to the major tendencies identified in the conflict theory of decision making: vigilance, hypervigilance, and defensive avoidance (buck passing and procrastination). A sample of 1,119 Belgian human resource professionals completed the Melbourne Decision Making Questionnaire, the 18-item short-form Need for Cognition Scale, and the Need for Closure Inventory. Ordinary least squares regression analysis indicated that significant relationships existed between need for cognition, need for closure, and conflict decision-making styles. The authors also found significant effects of gender and age.     

Psychometric properties and measurement invariance of the Weight Self-Stigma Questionnaire and Weight Bias Internalization Scale in children and adolescents

Background/ObjectiveGiven the negative consequences of weight bias, including internalized weight stigma, on health outcomes, two instruments—the Weight Self-Stigma Questionnaire (WSSQ) and Weight Bias Internalization Scale (WBIS)—have been developed. However, their psychometric properties are yet to be tested for Asian pediatric populations. Method:Participants aged 8 to 12 years (N = 287; 153 boys) completed the WSSQ and the WBIS, and they were classified into either a group with overweight or a group without overweight based on self-reported weight and height. Results:Both WSSQ and WBIS had their factor structures supported by confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs). The measurement invariance of two-factor structure was further supported for WSSQ across gender and weight status. The measurement invariance of single-factor structure was supported for WBIS across gender but not across weight status. Conclusions:WSSQ and WBIS were both valid to assess the internalization of weight bias. However, the two instruments demonstrated different properties and should be applied in different situations.     

Structural and discriminant validity of the career factors inventory

Using a sample of 350 college students, this study examined the structural and discriminant validity of the Career Factors Inventory (CFI; Chartrand, Robbins, Morrill, & Boggs, 1990), a multidimensional measure of career indecision intended to be scored for two informational indecision components (Need for Career Information and Need for Self-Knowledge) and two personal-emotional components (Career Choice Anxiety and Generalized Indecisiveness). Results of confirmatory factor analyses and correlations revealed that: (a) the underlying structure of the CFI was similar for women and men, (b) the original four-factor model corresponding to the CFI’s scoring scheme demonstrated an excellent fit to the data, (c) a non-hierarchical two-factor model and a hierarchical model were both supported by the data, and (d) the CFI demonstrated evidence of discriminant validity. Implications for career counseling and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Personality and social attitudes: Evidence for positive-approach motivation

Extensive research has linked general personality factors to social attitudes, but there has been comparatively little work on the roles played by specific approach-avoidance personality factors, especially positive-approach ones. Here we relate such factors to the two main clusters of social attitudes (Right-Wing Authoritarianism, RWA; and Social Dominance Orientation, SDO), and related cognitive constructs (Need for Cognition and Need for Closure). Results revealed: (a) positive-approach motivation is consistently related to both RWA and SDO, with little contribution from negative-avoidance motivation; and (b) negative-avoidance motivation played a part in Need for Cognition (negatively related) and Need for Closure (positively related). These data challenge previous theorizing concerning the role of fear/anxiety in social attitude formation and prejudice more generally. We conclude that, to a larger extent than previously thought, approach-related personality factors underpin the positive reinforcement of social attitudes and prejudice. Our results may help to account for the failure of programmes designed to reduce prejudice which have been based on the reduction of negative emotion and motivation.     

Measuring tolerance of ambiguity: Item polarity,dimensionality, and criterion validity

Research involving tolerance of ambiguity (TA) has produced inconsistent findings for half a century. Some of this inconsistency may be due to the psychometric shortcomings of the TA measures. In this investigation, the Budner (1962) and McLain (1993) TA scales were examined using confirmatory factor analyses. Both scales were tested against a single-factor model, a two-factor model, a two-factor correlated model, and a two-method/single-trait model with method defined by item polarity (positive and negative). Results demonstrated that the two-method/single trait model was the best fit for both scales. However, whereas the McLain scale demonstrated adequate psychometric integrity, the Budner items failed to load sufficiently on the trait factor suggesting a weakness in validity. Correlations with verbal ability and inconsistent regression results with respect to the Budner scale support the choice of the McLain scale in future work.     

Attachment and Religion: The Need to Leave Our Secure Base: A Comment on the Discussion Between Granqvist,Rizzuto, and Wulff

Human stem cell research has revived long-standing debates regarding the sanctity and beginning of life. The current study addresses the issue by examining the ability of selected religiosity and personality variables to predict attitudes regarding stem cell research. Participants were given questionnaires measuring attitudes regarding stem cell research, along with the Need for Closure scale, the Internal Control Index, the Need for Uniqueness scale, religious orientation scales, and the Literal-Antiliteral-Mythological scale. Results indicate that those who hold more traditional religious beliefs are likely to oppose stem cell research for moral reasons, whereas those who have a more open-ended approach to religion are likely to be in favor of such research. Results also showed that personality variables were helpful in predicting people's confidence in institutions' ability to manage the ethical questions surrounding such research.     

An examination of dimensions of Psychological Empowerment Scale for service employees

In the present study the dimensions and factorial structure of the Psychological Empowerment Scale for a sample of 173 restaurant service employees from 20 restaurants in the USA were analyzed, using principal axis factor analysis. The analysis indicated a two-factor solution for the scale with Cronbach alpha of .91 and .89. These factors were labeled Attitude and Influence and accounted for approximately 63% of the common variance. This differed from the original four-factor structure of Spreitzer and in two studies by Fulford and Enz in 1995 and by Hancer and George in 2003, a three-factor structure. Implications for research and recommendations are presented.     

Need for cognition and cognitive performance from a cross-cultural perspective: examples of academic success and solving anagrams

The cross-cultural validity of the Need for Cognition Scale and its relationship with cognitive performance were investigated in two studies. In the first study, the relationships between the scale and university entrance scores, course grades, study skills, and social desirability were examined. Using the short form of the Turkish version of the Need for Cognition Scale (S. Gül?z & C. J. Sadowski, 1995) no correlation with academic performance was found but there was significant correlation with a study skills scale and a social desirability scale created for this study. When regression analysis was used to predict grade point average, the Need for Cognition Scale was a significant predictor. In the second study, participants low or high in need for cognition solved multiple-solution anagrams. The instructions preceding the task set the participants' expectations regarding task difficulty. An interaction between expectation and need for cognition indicated that participants with low need for cognition performed worse when they expected difficult problems. Results of the two studies showed that need for cognition has cross-cultural validity and that its effect on cognitive performance was mediated by other variables.     

Need for Cognition and Cognitive Performance From a Cross-Cultural Perspective: Examples of Academic Success and Solving Anagrams

The cross-cultural validity of the Need for Cognition Scale and its relationship with cognitive performance were investigated in two studies. In the first study, the relationships between the scale and university entrance scores, course grades, study skills, and social desirability were examined. Using the short form of the Turkish version of the Need for Cognition Scale (S. Gülgöz & C. J. Sadowski, 1995) no correlation with academic performance was found but there was significant correlation with a study skills scale and a social desirability scale created for this study. When regression analysis was used to predict grade point average, the Need for Cognition Scale was a significant predictor. In the second study, participants low or high in need for cognition solved multiple-solution anagrams. The instructions preceding the task set the participants' expectations regarding task difficulty. An interaction between expectation and need for cognition indicated that participants with low need for cognition performed worse when they expected difficult problems. Results of the two studies showed that need for cognition has cross-cultural validity and that its effect on cognitive performance was mediated by other variables.     

Need for cognitive closure and politics: Voting,political attitudes and attributional style

T his paper examines the impact of dispositional Need for Cognitive Closure (NFC) on different political attitudes and on the “person blame” and the “system blame” dimensions. Two hundred and thirty‐four psychology students completed a questionnaire containing the Italian version of the Need for Closure scale, a measure of political and ideological attitudes, a measure of the person‐system blame dimensions, and a measure of past voting. Results showed that high NFC individuals (vs. low NFCs) reported having voted for a right‐wing party and holding more conservative attitudes. High NFCs (vs. low NFCs) turned out to have stronger anti‐immigrant attitudes, to be more nationalistic, to prefer an autocratic leadership and a centralized form of political power. High NFCs also value religiosity more highly than low NFCs. High NFCs (vs. low NFCs) scored lower on pluralism and multiculturalism. Furthermore, high NFCs (vs. low NFCs) revealed a tendency to blame individuals for social problems, but no significant difference was found with regard to the system blame dimension. Results are discussed in the light of the motivated social cognition approach (Jost, Glaser, Kruglanski, & Sulloway, 2003).