Analysis

The Curiosity and Exploration Inventory (CEI-7) is a questionnaire used to measure an individual’s level of curiosity and exploration.

Purpose

The purpose of the Curiosity and Exploration Inventory (CEI-7) is to provide a framework for assessing the degree of curiosity and exploration in various aspects of a person’s life. This helps to understand the individual’s tendency toward exploration, creativity, and openness to new experiences and knowledge. The CEI-7 can be used by researchers, psychologists, and other professionals to evaluate curiosity and exploration across different populations, including youth, adults, or individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds. It is also applicable in educational settings to examine how curiosity and exploration influence learning and development. Furthermore, it can be used for personal growth, supporting individuals in better understanding themselves and their preferences when it comes to exploration and openness to novel experiences.

Scoring

The Curiosity and Exploration Inventory consists of seven distinct scales, each addressing a different dimension of curiosity and exploration. These include thirst for knowledge, which reflects the interest and eagerness to learn new things; creative absorption, which refers to the ability to absorb and integrate new ideas into one’s thinking; physical autonomy, which pertains to interest in exploring the natural environment and physical phenomena; social autonomy, which relates to the desire for discovering new social experiences and interpersonal relationships; emotional autonomy, which refers to the inclination to explore new feelings and emotional experiences; improvisation, which involves a willingness to take innovative and spontaneous approaches to problem-solving or dealing with situations; and creative exploration, which reflects the motivation to seek out new experiences and create new things. Each scale is assessed based on the individual’s agreement with specific statements, and the scores across these scales can be used to create an overall profile of the person’s curiosity and exploration tendencies.

References

Kashdan, T.B., Rose, P., & Fincham, F.D. (2004). Curiosity and exploration: Facilitating positive subjective experiences and personal growth opportunities. Journal of Personality Assessment, 82, 291–305.
Kashdan, T. B., Barrios, V., Forsyth, J. P., & Steger, M. F. (in press). Experiential avoidance as a generalized psychological vulnerability: Comparisons with coping and emotion regulation strategies. Behaviour Research and Therapy.