Exploring the influence of need for closure on anti-immigrants collective actions: The mediating role of binding moral foundations and desired cultural tightness

What drives individuals to participate in collective actions against immigrants? A substantial body of research has identified the epistemic motivation (i.e., the need for cognitive closure) as one of the key motivational factors of outgroup hostility. Starting from this theoretical framework, across one cross-sectional study (n = 313), we tested the role of the need for closure in explaining the intention to engage in collective actions against immigrants. Our hypothesis posited that an intensified need for cognitive closure would be a catalyst, indirectly and positively shaping individuals' intentions to participate in collective actions against immigrants. Moreover, we believed that the process determining this outcome would involve sequential mediation through binding moral foundations and the aspiration for cultural tightness. The empirical findings substantiate this hypothesis, revealing a complex psychological pathway that links cognitive needs to anti-immigrant dispositions.