Curiosity evolves as information unfolds

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Information Science

Background:

• Curiosity drives information seeking, but resolution often involves gradual information accumulation.
• Understanding how curiosity evolves during this process is crucial for cognitive and affective science.

Purpose of the Study:

• Investigate dynamic changes in curiosity during information gathering.
• Examine relationships between curiosity, emotional states, confidence, and behavior.
• Determine factors influencing the curiosity-confidence relationship.

Main Methods:

• Evolving Line Drawing Task with participant guesses and viewing choices.
• Two studies: Study 1 with predetermined timing, Study 2 with participant agency.
• Analysis of curiosity, confidence, stimulus entropy, and guess accuracy.

Main Results:

• Curiosity fluctuates dynamically within information-gathering episodes.
• The curiosity-confidence link depends on stimulus entropy and guess accuracy.
• Curiosity can be experienced as positive or negative, influencing engagement.

Conclusions:

• Curiosity is multifaceted and evolves with information accumulation.
• Curiosity promotes sustained engagement in the discovery process.
• The value of curiosity lies in the process of exploration and learning.