Need For Closure Scale - Long

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								The Need for Closure Scale (NFCS), 41 questions
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Script Author: Katja Borchert, Ph.D. (katjab@millisecond.com), Millisecond
Date: 01-14-2026
Last Updated:  01-14-2026 by K. Borchert (katjab@millisecond.com), Millisecond

Script Copyright © 01-14-2026 Millisecond Software, LLC

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VERSION
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Format: Long
language: English

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BACKGROUND INFO
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This script implements a computerized version of the The Need for Closure Scale (NFCS), originally published by
Webster & Kruglanski (1994) and updated by Roets & Van Hiel (2007).
The NFCS measures the need for certainty ('closure'). It comes in a long version (41 questions) and a short one
(15 questions). This script implements the long version.
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REFERENCES
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//PLEASE NOTE: When reporting results both scales need to be referenced.

Webster, D. M., & Kruglanski, A. W. (1994). Individual differences in need for cognitive
closure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(6), 1049–1062.

Roets, A., & Van Hiel, A. (2007). Separating ability from need: Clarifying the dimensional
structure of the need for closure scale. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 33(2),
266-280.

https://www.kruglanskiarie.com/need-for-closure
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TASK DESCRIPTION
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A self report scale with 41 6-point Likert scale questions covering 5 subscales of 'certainty'
* Need for order (10 questions)
* Need for predictability (8 questions)
* Decisiveness (6 questions)
* Avoidance or ambiguity (9 questions)
* Closed mindedness (6 questions)
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DURATION 
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3 minutes

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DATA OUTPUT DICTIONARY
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(1) Raw data file: 'nfcs41.iqdat'

date:						date script was run 
time: 						(local) time script was run 
subject:					with the current subject id
group: 						with the current group id
session:					with the current session id
build:						The specific Inquisit version used (the 'build') that was run

q*_response:				response given (in assigned values)
							Scale: 1 (strongly disagree) - 6 (strongly agree)
							R: automatically reversed coded questions

q*_latency:					how much time (in ms) the participant spent on the surveypage with this particular 
							question (the last time this particular surveypage was visited)

(2) Summary data file: 'nfcs41_summary*.iqdat'

inquisit.version:			Inquisit version run
computer.platform:			the platform the script was run on (win/mac/ios/android)
computer.touch:				0 = device has no touchscreen capabilities; 1 = device has touchscreen capabilities
computer.hasKeyboard:		0 = no external keyboard detected; 1 = external keyboard detected
startdate:					date script was run
starttime:					time script was started
subjectid:					assigned subject id number
groupid:					assigned group id number
sessionid:					assigned session id number
elapsedtime:				time it took to run script (in ms); measured from onset to offset of script
completed:					0 = script was not completed (prematurely aborted); 
							1 = script was completed (all conditions run)

nfcs41:						Total Score, sum of all scores, Range: 41-246
							Notes: Scores up to 82 mean low NFC. Scores from 205-246 mean high NFC.

//Subscales:
needForOrder:				10 questions (q1A,q6A,q10A,q20AR,q23A,q27AR,q32A,q33A,q35A,q41AR), Range: 10-60
needForPredictability:		8 questions (q5BR,q7B,q11B,q18BR,q19BR,q25B,q26B,q40B), Range: 8-48
decisiveness:				6 questions (q12C,q13C,q15C,q16C,q17C,q22C), Range: 6-36
avoidance:					9 questions (q3D,q8D,q14D,q21D,q29D,q30D,q31D,q36D,q38D), Range: 9-54
closeMindedness:			8 questions (q2ER,q4E,q9E,q24ER,q28ER,q34ER,q37ER,q39E), Range: 8-48

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EDITABLE CODE 
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//language-dependent
/ instructions = ``			the presented instructions
/ nextLabel = "Continue"	navigation button label to go to the next survey page
/ backLabel = "Back"		navigation button label to return to the previous survey page
/ finishLabel = "Finish"	navigation button label for submitting the last survey page