Curiosity and reward after unsuccessful memory recall

Abstract

Curiosity is a motivational state characterized by the desire to obtain knowledge. Prior research suggests that metacognitive experiences during unsuccessful memory recall may induce curiosity. Specifically, feeling-of-knowing (FOK) experiences have been associated with increased subsequent information-seeking behaviour for inaccessible information. Here, we further investigated this relationship by focusing on subjective experiences of curiosity and reward. Our paradigm required learning of face-name associations followed by probing of name recall and FOK experiences on unsuccessful trials. Subsequently, participants rated their curiosity (Experiment 1) or made information-seeking choices and rated their satisfaction upon completion (Experiment 2). Results showed, as predicted, that FOK experiences correlate with subjective ratings of curiosity as well as information-seeking choices. Critically, we found they are also positively correlated with satisfaction reported upon exposure to sought information. These correlational findings converge to suggest that unsuccessful memory recall shapes subsequent information seeking behaviour through a combination of metacognitive and reward-based mechanisms.