A rational analysis of curiosity

Abstract: We present a rational analysis of curiosity, proposing that people's curiosity is driven by seeking stimuli that maximize their ability to make appropriate responses in the future. This perspective offers a way to unify previous theories of curiosity into a single framework. Experimental results confirm our model's predictions, showing how the relationship between curiosity and confidence can change significantly depending on the nature of the environment. Please refer to https://psyarxiv.com/wg5m6/ for a more updated version of this manuscript with a more detailed modeling section with extensive experiments.