Willingness to self-censor: A construct and measurement tool for public opinion research

We define self-censorship as the withholding of one's true opinion from an audience perceived to disagree with that opinion. Willingness to self-censor can be conceptualized as an individual difference, and we introduce here an 8-item self-report instrument to measure this construct. The instrument yields reliable data in both student and nonstudent populations and can be easily administered in no more than a few minutes in written or oral format. Evidence of the validity of the measure comes from findings that self-censorers (i.e. those scoring relatively high on the measure) tend to be relatively more anxious about social interaction and communication, more concerned about how other people evaluate them, less argumentative, and lower in self-esteem. Although correlated with measures of these related constructs, confirmatory factor analyses indicate that the willingness to self-censor scale is statistically distinguishable from these measures. The measure can serve as a useful research tool for investigators interested in public opinion expression, political participation, media effects, interpersonal discussion, group decision making, and other areas.