The Relationship Between Curiosity and Extraversion, and the Influence of Adolescence

Adolescence is characterized by heightened exploratory behavior, novelty-seeking, and reward sensitivity, making it a key period for studying personality development. This study examined the relationship between Curiosity (Curious/Energetic temperament) and Extraversion (personality trait), focusing on whether age moderates this association. A cross-sectional design was used with N = 1743 adolescents who completed the Fisher Temperament Inventory (FTI) and Ten Item Personality Inventory (TIPI). Respondents were categorized into two age groups: younger adolescents (13-18 years) and older adolescents (19-24 years). Statistical analyses included Pearson correlations to examine the relationship between Curiosity and Extraversion, linear regression to evaluate Curiosity as a predictor of Extraversion, moderation analysis to examine age as an interaction term, and an independent samples t-test to test whether this relationship varied between younger (13-18 years) and older (19-24 years)...Show moreAdolescence is characterized by heightened exploratory behavior, novelty-seeking, and reward sensitivity, making it a key period for studying personality development. This study examined the relationship between Curiosity (Curious/Energetic temperament) and Extraversion (personality trait), focusing on whether age moderates this association. A cross-sectional design was used with N = 1743 adolescents who completed the Fisher Temperament Inventory (FTI) and Ten Item Personality Inventory (TIPI). Respondents were categorized into two age groups: younger adolescents (13-18 years) and older adolescents (19-24 years). Statistical analyses included Pearson correlations to examine the relationship between Curiosity and Extraversion, linear regression to evaluate Curiosity as a predictor of Extraversion, moderation analysis to examine age as an interaction term, and an independent samples t-test to test whether this relationship varied between younger (13-18 years) and older (19-24 years) adolescents. The results revealed a moderate and statistically significant positive correlation between Curiosity and Extraversion (r =.507, p < .001). Regression analysis indicated that Curiosity significantly predicted Extraversion (F(1, 1741) = 603.9, p < .001), accounting for 25.8% of its variance (R2 = .2576, adjusted R2 = .2571). Moderation analysis indicated that age did not influence this relationship, suggesting that the relationship between Curiosity and Extraversion remains stable across adolescence (𝛽 = −.003604, 𝑝 = .355). Independent samples t-test revealed a significant difference in Extraversion scores between age groups (t(1717) = -3.893, p < .001), with older adolescents scoring slightly higher than their younger peers. However, the effect size was small, indicating minimal practical significance (Cohen’s d = -.203). Curiosity scores did not significantly differ between groups (t(1717) = -1.127, p = .260). These findings suggest that while Extraversion shows modest developmental variation across adolescence, Curiosity remains relatively stable. As Curiosity alone does not fully explain Extraversion, future research should examine additional contributing factors such as reward sensitivity, motivation, and environmental influences (e.g., social interactions, family dynamics, and cultural context), using longitudinal designs to assess personality development beyond adolescence.Show less

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The Relationship Between Curiosity and Extraversion, and the Influence of Adolescence