Killed the Cat, But Also Saved It: Curiosity's Dual Impact on Active and Passive Risk Behaviors

Decision-making often involves uncertainty and risk, which can stem from active behaviors (e.g., gambling) or passive ones (e.g., avoiding medical tests). Passive risks, those arising from omission or neglect, pose unique challenges for prevention and intervention. Although instrumental information is crucial for risk assessment, individuals frequently avoid it. The current research proposes a model linking epistemic curiosity—the drive to seek knowledge—to tendencies toward passive and active risk-taking. In Study 1 (N = 213, MTurk), epistemic curiosity was negatively associated with passive risk-taking and positively associated with active risk-taking. Study 2 (N = 403, MTurk) further explored this pattern, showing that the inverse relationship between curiosity and passive risk-taking is mediated by information-seeking, while the positive relationship with active risk-taking is mediated by sensation-seeking. These findings reveal the dual role of curiosity in shaping risk behavior and offer insights for risk management strategies that leverage curiosity while addressing its potential downsides.