Ricerc@Sapienza

Research on moral foundations theory has found that liberals typically favor the individualizing foundations (i.e., concern for the individual) but typically oppose the binding foundations (i.e., concern for the group). We propose that need for cognitive closure (NFC) can explain when liberals will favor the binding foundations. In two studies, we found that liberals in Italy and the United States were more likely to endorse the binding foundations when they had high NFC.

Women leaders in the workforce are adversely affected by two sets of stereotypes: women are warm and communal but leaders are assertive and competent. This mismatch of stereotypes can lead to negative attitudes toward women leaders, however, not all individuals will be equally sensitive to these stereotypes. Men and women characterized by a need for cognitive closure (the desire for stable and certain knowledge) should be particularly sensitive to these stereotypes because they can be stable knowledge sources.

A field study conducted with professional athletes (N=420¸ 72.2% men, Mage= 25.14) examined the antecedents of stress linked to career termination. We hypothesized that stress linked to career termination may be affected by the type of passion (harmonious and obsessive) athletes develop for their sport activity, and that this passion may be affected by regulatory mode orientations (locomotion and assessment) and need for closure (NFC).

We examined, in different work organizations, how subordinates high in social dominance orientation (SDO; individual desire to sustain group-based hierarchies) and in need for cognitive closure (NFCC, an individual's epistemic motivation to avoid uncertainty) comply with harsh power tactics as means to sustain asymmetrical intergroup relationships. We studied the interaction between SDO and NFCC in two organizations that differentially endorse hierarchy-attenuating and hierarchy-enhancing legitimizing myths.

Several studies have underlined how chronic exposure to environmental noise may have negative effects on performance, wellbeing, and social relations. The present study (N = 90 employees of a motor factory who are chronically exposed to environmental noise) investigated whether the negative effects of chronic exposure of noise-sensitive individuals to noise in the workplace may be moderated by the need for cognitive closure (i.e., an epistemic tendency to reduce uncertainty; NFCC, Kruglanski, 2004).

Little is known about epistemic motivations affecting political ideology when people make environmental decisions. In two studies, we examined the key role that political ideology played in the relationship between need for cognitive closure (NCC) and self-reported ecofriendly behavior. Study 1: 279 participants completed the NCC, pro-environmental, and political ideology measures. Mediation analyses showed that NCC was related to less pro-environmental behavior through more right-wing political ideology.