Science Behind Closure: Why Some People Might Need It?

When a human mind seeks closure, it is searching for the cause of a certain loss, a rational explanation that can help them resolve the painful emotions caused by the situation.

An emotional closure can be considered a psychological completion. For some people, it is an important psychological need to move on to other levels in life. While the concept of closure is often limited to romantic relationships but in reality, it can extend to all situations that are ambiguous in nature and feel incomplete like the death of a loved one, or the sudden loss of a job or a social status. Most of the time, negative events provide a lower sense of closure and people need a psychological conclusion to move on from them.

As per reports, when a human mind seeks closure, it is searching for the cause of a certain loss, a rational explanation that can help them resolve the painful emotions caused by the situation. In the age of social media, where online behaviour like ‘ghosting’ is becoming common, more people are actively seeking psychological completion. This lack of explanation is causing them stress, and anxiety and has been associated with mental distress.

Not everyone might need closure

Studies have shown that the need for closure might differ from person to person. Some people might prefer ambiguity over clarity as the latter can instigate feelings of guilt, rejection and criticism. Some studies have shown that people who love order and predictability have a higher need for closure. People who might have strong personal or religious ideologies might find independent ways of seeking closure, for instance, they might see the situation as fated or of a higher good. People who are ghosted by others on social media platforms might experience the situation as a form of loss lacking closure, even if the one who ghosted them was not very close. Studies have associated the act of being ghosted with a sense of rejection and physical bodily pain.

Should closure be dependent on others?

As per some experts, no answer is also an answer. While a person always seeks closure from an external person and an outside event, experts say that sometimes it might not be possible for instance the rationale behind the passing away of a loved one. The process of closure can involve steps like understanding the situation, processing the difficult emotions and allowing time so that the situation can be seen as fitting in a context. In the end, closure is about accepting the situation however unpleasant it might have been.