Curiosity helps us to learn, remember, socialise and be open to other people's points of view.
Science writer David Robson says it's well worth pursuing.
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David Robson Photo: supplied
David Robson is the author of The Expectation Effect: How Your Mindset Can Transform Your Life.
Curiosity is good for both the mind and the mood, Robson tells Jim Mora.
When someone is highly curious about a fact, they're 30% more likely to recall it, a 2014 study showed, and the dopamine spike that arises from initial curiosity enhances our memory for some time afterwards.
"Curiosity about one thing has a spillover effect and helps your memory with all sorts of facts that come by while you're in that state of curiosity."
Because curiosity aids memory, it's one of the key predictors of academic success, Robson says.
Curious people are more willing to have their personal gratification delayed, so more patient with the learning process.
"Often in education, we need a lot of persistence to solve a maths question or research a topic of interest. If you're more curious, you're more likely to get pleasure out of that process.
"What I think [curiosity is] doing is helping you enjoy the process of a task... rather than just want to get to the end of it."
Children are almost all innately curious but while in the education system often stop asking so many questions and begin to see learning as a chore, Robson says.
"Their brains almost shut down because of the way the information is presented.
"I think there's a bigger societal question here about how we prevent that from happening. How can teachers try their best to inspire curiosity rather than shutting it down?"
Workplaces would do well to prioritise curiosity, too, he says, as an employee that's curious about their work is more likely to stay engaged and less likely to burn out.
Research by American psychologist Todd Kashdan has revealed workers who are more curious have an all-around advantage.
"They had more engagement with their work, they were more innovative at their work … but they also had greater job satisfaction and were less likely to suffer from burnout."
Curiosity seems to make their work appear more meaningful, Robson says, and even build their emotional resilience.
"Even if they had a certain level of stress they were better able to cope with that than people who didnt feel much curiosity about their jobs."
In social situations, curiosity is a trusty friend, Robson says - asking another person questions about their lives will not only make them more interesting to you, but you'll also become more appealing to them as people like sharing parts of themselves.
And it's also a trait that can help you keep an open mind.
Todd Kashdan discovered people who are more curious are more likely to engage with other opinions and question their own assumptions.
"We don't really like to challenge our world views because it can be quite threatening to our identity ... but for people who are more curious… their desire to know more actually makes them more intrigued when something questions their assumptions. So they're more likely to engage with that … and update their point of view to a more objective point of view."
So how do we spark our own curiosity?
Because it's contagious, surround yourself with people who like to explore new things when you can, Robson says.
If a topic or task seems uninteresting, generating your own questions about it is a way to amplify your own curiosity.
Compiling and keeping in mind these questions helps to make a subject more personally relevant, he says.
"If you come to a new course with a bunch of questions that you personally want to answer, that already spiked your curiosity so you're more likely to learn the whole thing more easily."
"You're planting seeds of curiosity there that can then blossom, and you might actually find the whole topic becomes more interesting."
Finally, Robson recommends we give ourselves greater permission to pursue what makes us curious.
"It's not a waste of time. It's actually helping you to build a happier, healthier, more productive mind."
