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More Time and Effort, Same Curiosity: Expected Effort Does Not Impact Curiosity
1Department of Psychology, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA.
Open Mind : Discoveries in Cognitive Science
|April 9, 2026
Summary
Curiosity is not affected by the effort needed to find answers. However, people are less likely to seek information when it requires substantial time and effort.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Behavioral Economics
Background:
- Existing theories suggest curiosity peaks when learning is probable and rapid.
- The impact of practical learning barriers, like information-seeking effort, on curiosity remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether the anticipated effort to obtain information influences subjective curiosity.
- To differentiate between curiosity feelings and information-seeking behavior.
Main Methods:
- Three preregistered experiments involving 419 adult participants.
- Participants rated curiosity for trivia questions with varying information-seeking effort (minimal vs. substantial).
- Experiment 3 manipulated the probability of gaining information through effort.
Main Results:
- Anticipated effort significantly influenced decisions to seek information.
- Self-reported curiosity levels were not affected by the expected effort.
- Information-seeking behavior was sensitive to perceived costs, unlike curiosity itself.
Conclusions:
- Subjective curiosity appears independent of the practical costs associated with information acquisition.
- Behavioral choices to pursue information are strongly influenced by effort and cost considerations.
- Findings suggest a dissociation between the feeling of curiosity and the decision to act on it.
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