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1 Across the lifespan, curiosity motivates us to learn, yet curiosity varies strikingly between 2 individuals. Such individual differences have been shown for two distinct dimensions of 3 curiosity: epistemic curiosity (EC), the desire to acquire knowledge about facts, and 4 perceptual curiosity (PC), the desire for sensory information. It is not known, however, 5 whether both dimensions of curiosity depend on different brain networks and whether inter-6 individual differences in curiosity depend on variation in anatomical connectivity within these 7 networks. Here, we investigated the neuroanatomical connections underpinning individual 8 variation in trait curiosity. Fifty-one female participants underwent a two-shell diffusion MRI 9 sequence and completed questionnaires measuring EC and PC. Using deterministic 10 spherical deconvolution tractography we extracted microstructural metrics (fractional 11 anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD)) from two key white matter tracts: the fornix 12 (implicated in novelty processing, exploration, information seeking and episodic memory) 13 and the inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF) (implicated in semantic learning and memory). In 14 line with our predictions, we found that EC -but not PC -correlated with ILF microstructure. 15Fornix microstructure, in contrast, correlated with both EC and PC with posterior 16 hippocampal fornix fibres -associated with posterior hippocampal network connectivity -17 linked to PC specifically. These findings suggest that differences in distinct dimensions of 18 curiosity map systematically onto specific white matter tracts underlying well characterized 19 brain networks. Furthermore, the results pave the way to study the anatomical substrates of 20 inter-individual differences in dimensions of trait curiosity that motivate the learning of 21 distinct forms of knowledge and skills. 22 Significance statement 23Despite recent interest in curiosity states and the broad spectrum of variation in stable 24 tendencies to experience or express curiosity, the biological correlates of trait curiosity are 25 unknown. Here, we found that specific types of curiosity correlate with microstructure of 26 specific white matter tracts in the brain -the inferior longitudinal fasciculus and the fornix. 27Our findings on the relationship between specific aspects of curiosity and anatomical 28 connections underlying well characterized brain networks highlight the specificity of trait 29 curiosity. Furthermore, our findings pave the way to further understand inter-individual 30 differences in curiosity and which aspects of curiosity benefit language, memory and other 31 cognitive processes cultivating a deeper knowledge and skill set. 32 4 Introduction 33Curiosity is described as the desire for new information that motivates seeking out and 34 acquiring knowledge (Loewenstein, 1994; Litman, 2005). The momentary experience of 35 curiosity can be seen as a motivational state that facilitates knowledge acquisition (Silvia & 36 Kashdan, 2009; Gottlieb and Oudeyer,...

Curiosity reflects an individual’s intrinsic motivation to seek information in order to close information gaps. In laboratory-based experiments, both curiosity and information seeking have been associated with enhanced neural dynamics in the mesolimbic dopaminergic circuit. However, it is unclear whether curiosity and dopaminergic dynamics drive information seeking in real life. We investigated (i) whether curiosity predicts different characteristics of real-life information seeking and (ii) whether functional connectivity within the mesolimbic dopaminergic circuit is associated with information seeking outside the laboratory. Up to 15 months before the COVID-19 pandemic, curiosity and anxiety questionnaires, and a 10-minute resting-state fMRI session were conducted. In a follow-up survey early during the COVID-19 pandemic, participants repeated the questionnaires and completed an additional questionnaire about their COVID-19-related information seeking. Individual differences in curiosity but not anxiety were positively associated with the frequency of information-seeking behaviour. Additionally, the frequency of information seeking was predicted by individual differences in resting-state functional connectivity between the ventral tegmental area and the nucleus accumbens. The present translational study paves the way for future studies on the role of curiosity in real-life information seeking by showing that both curiosity and mesolimbic dopaminergic functional network support real-life information-seeking behaviour.

Curiosity reflects the intrinsic motivation of an individual to seek information in order to close information gaps. Laboratory-based experiments have shown that both curiosity and information seeking are associated with enhanced neural dynamics in the mesolimbic dopaminergic circuit. However, it is unclear whether curiosity and its associated neural dynamics in the dopaminergic circuit drive information seeking in real life. The present study investigated (i) whether curiosity traits predict different characteristics of real-life information seeking and (ii) whether functional connectivity within the mesolimbic dopaminergic circuit is associated with information seeking outside of the laboratory. Up to 15 month before the COVID-19 pandemic, we conducted curiosity and anxiety questionnaires as well as a 10-minute resting-state fMRI session. In a follow-up survey early during the COVID-19 pandemic, participants repeated the questionnaires and filled out an additional questionnaire about their COVID-19-related information seeking. Curiosity but not anxiety remained stable over time. Individual differences in curiosity were positively associated with the frequency of information-seeking behaviour. Anxiety during the pandemic was not linked to any characteristics of real-life information seeking. Interestingly, the frequency of information seeking was also independently predicted by individual differences in resting-state functional connectivity between the ventral tegmental area and the nucleus accumbens. The present translational study paves the way for future studies on the role of curiosity in real-life information seeking by showing that curiosity drives information seeking in real-life situations and that the curiosity-promoting mesolimbic dopaminergic functional network supports the frequency of real-life information-seeking behaviour.

Individuals differ in the way they seek information, acquire knowledge, and form memories. Neural fingerprints of intrinsic functional connectivity distinguish between individuals and predict inter-individual differences in task performance. Both curiosity - the desire to acquire new information - and information prediction errors (IPEs) - the mismatch between information and previous expectations - enhance memory but differ considerably between individuals. The present study assessed whether inter-individual differences in functional connectivity measured using resting-state fMRI determine the extent to which individuals benefit from memory-enhancing effects of curiosity and IPEs. We found a double dissociation between individual differences in mesolimbic functional connectivity, which accounted for curiosity-driven but not IPE-related memory enhancements, and individual differences in cingulo-hippocampal functional connectivity, which predicted IPE-driven but not curiosity-related memory enhancements. These novel findings on how inter-individual differences in dissociable intrinsic functional networks determine memory enhancements stress the need to account for these differences in theoretical frameworks of curiosity and memory.