Imagine sending a heartfelt message to someone and waiting hours for a reply. As time passes, you start to worry: Did you say or do something wrong? Are they being rude? What does that imply? Most people have felt this downward cycle of discomfort. So, what is so awful about not knowing?
Psychologists call this uncomfortableness an offshoot of what they term the Need for Cognitive Closure (NFCC), or what may be described as our innate need to find clear, definitive answers and the intolerance to ambiguity. When we experience relationship ambiguity, we seek to fix it, eliminate the ambiguity, and the call to structure is strong and often automatic.
Psychologists Arie Kruglanski and Donna Webster coined the term NFCC during the 1990s. They described it as a need of the individual to achieve an answer to a certain subject, any answer to confusion and unclear-headedness. When NFCC is high, individuals have a preference for certainty and fast judgments at the expense of half-baked information or inaccurate judgment. This need can probably be explained by evolutionary origins. In more primitive groups, being able to make a quick choice could be the difference between survival and death. In today’s world, the same impulse drives us, though the stakes differ.
The Psychological Cost of Ambiguity
Research shows that uncertainty negatively affects mental health. It activates the brain’s amygdala, the threat-detection center, triggering cortisol and preparing the body for action. A 2022 study found that participants with high NFCC reported more distress in uncertain social situations. They also tended to make quick judgments to relieve discomfort. That’s why ambiguous relationships frustrate us, or why cliffhangers in movies feel so annoying. Our brains don’t like to sit in the middle of the road.
Though helpful in decision making, the need for closure has downsides. High NFCC individuals tend to exhibit confirmation bias, which implies they seek information that confirms their beliefs and avoid opposing views. For example, a high NFCC person who believes a certain diet is the healthiest will only read articles supporting that diet and ignore scientific studies showing its drawbacks. A 2023 study in Current Psychology found that people with high NFCC were less likely to change their opinion, even when there was clear evidence of them being wrong. The tendency may expose people to the threat of political polarization, misinformation, etc. People may prefer a wrong but simple explanation over a complex but accurate one.
Our desire for closure severely influences the way we interact with one another as well. High NFCC individuals often rush to label their relationships, leading to misunderstandings, snap judgments, judgments, and strain. The discomfort of not knowing where one stands can harm trust. A study in Personal Relationships found that people high in NFCC were more likely to interpret ambiguous behaviour (like a delayed reply) negatively. They also reported lower satisfaction in unpredictable relationships—such as long-distance ones or those with irregular routines. On the other hand, in stable relationships, NFCC individuals often feel more committed and satisfied. Predictability provides relief when closure is a mental need.
In today’s world of 24/7 news and endless scrolling, our desire for closure is constantly triggered. Social media platforms provoke fast emotional reactions through clickbait and trending content. People high in NFCC often gravitate toward simplified narratives, even if misleading, because they offer a false sense of clarity. This explains the appeal of conspiracy theories and fake news. They provide easy answers to complex problems and psychological relief. NFCC limits openness to doubt or nuance, increasing our vulnerability to misleading sources.
Is Wanting Closure Always Bad?
Absolutely not. Closure is essential for emotional processing. It helps us recover from grief, organize thoughts, and move on. Without introspection, people may remain stuck in rumination. But balance is key. Closure becomes maladaptive when it overrides curiosity. In a fast-changing world, flexibility is just as important as decisiveness.
Is it possible to educate ourselves to be more comfortable and happier when we do not know? Yes, and it begins with awareness. The first step is realizing our discomfort drives premature conclusions. There are several evidence-based practices that can assist. Like Mindfulness Meditation. Evidence suggested by a study published in 2023 in Mindfulness showed that NFCC decreased, and openness toward new experiences improved with frequent mindfulness practice. Meditation helps us sit with discomfort instead of rushing to fix it. Another such practice can be Cognitive Reframing. Research finds it can be helpful to actively dispute thoughts which are catastrophic, such as “I did not get an answer, now everything will fall down”, and substitute them with some more measured thoughts. Habits such as asking clarifying questions can be helpful in avoiding assumptions. For example, in a relationship, instead of jumping to worst-case scenarios during a delayed reply, you might say, 'This is how I would describe it — I noticed a bit of a delay in your reply. Is everything okay?' This simple approach promotes open communication and understanding. Exposure to Ambiguity is also useful. Actively choosing to expose oneself to the ambiguity (by venturing into new experiences, reading different opinions, and having open-ended discussions) is a process that builds mental resilience over time
In Conclusion
The desire for closure is human. It guides us through complexity, decision-making. But when this need dominates, it creates bias in decision-making, strains rapport, and leaves the facilitation of misinformation viable. Being trained to accept uncertainty does not imply you abandon clarity. It is, in fact, where some of the richest learning, connection, and growth can start.
Alifa Vakil
