Age Differences in Curiosity Traits among Japanese Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Previous research shows that intelligent curiosity motivates intellectual activity. Such curiosity is associated with the health of mind and body throughout life. The present study examines age and gender differences in epistemic curiosity among Japanese adults. Participants were 4,376 Japanese adults (2,896 men) who participated in an online survey. Their mean age was 51.8 years. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that epistemic curiosity differs with age and gender. Diverse curiosity shows a curvilinearly increase with age while specific curiosity increases linearly with age. Men show higher diverse curiosity than women, whereas no gender difference is observed for specific curiosity. These results are discussed with reference to previous studies showing relationships between epistemic curiosity and openness to new experience.