Developing and Validating the Perceived System Curiosity Scale (PSC): Measuring Users' Perceived Curiosity of Systems

Research Background and Issues

• Identified Problems or Challenges
  Current technological systems (e.g., robots and voice assistants) are capable of exhibiting human-like curious behaviors. However, there is no standardized scale available to measure users' perceptions of system curiosity, making it difficult to systematically study how users perceive system curiosity and how such behavior influences human-computer interaction.

• Significance
  Curiosity is an important trait that fosters learning and social connection. Systems exhibiting curious behavior are often perceived as offering more natural and transparent interactions, enhancing user trust and improving overall functionality. Therefore, studying and quantifying users' perceptions of system curiosity is crucial for designing more effective and human-centered technologies.

• Research Motivation
  While some studies have explored the application of curious behaviors in robotic systems, they often rely on non-standardized, custom questions. Other studies directly adopt questionnaires designed to measure human curiosity, which fail to accurately capture users' perceptions of system curiosity. Thus, there is a need to develop a measurement tool specifically tailored to perceived system curiosity.

Solution

• Proposed Method or Solution
  The authors propose a scale called "Perceived System Curiosity" (PSC) to measure users' perceptions of system curiosity. PSC consists of three subscales that evaluate the dimensions of Explorative, Investigative, and Social curiosity.

• Innovations

  1. A New Domain: PSC is the first standardized scale designed to measure users' perceptions of system curiosity.
  2. Multidimensional Measurement: The scale introduces three distinct dimensions of curiosity (Explorative, Investigative, Social), enabling a more detailed and comprehensive assessment of perceived curiosity.
  3. Integration of Theory and Application: The scale construction integrates psychological theories of human curiosity and translates them into observable behaviors applicable to technological systems.

• Implementation Steps and Key Techniques

  1. Item Generation
     • Conducted an extensive literature review and developed a conceptual model, generating 831 initial items.
     • Filtered items for redundancy and relevance, narrowing them down to 189 items.
  2. Item Validation
     • Nine domain experts conducted an online evaluation, initially screening 82 relevant items.
     • Further refinement during expert discussions reduced the items to 64, with some rewording.
  3. Experimental Testing
     • Using 16 scenarios (including curious and non-curious system contexts), collected responses from 400 users via an online questionnaire.
     • Conducted Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), selecting 22 items and identifying a three-factor structure.
  4. Scale Validation
     • Conducted Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) with 320 users, further refining the scale to a final 12-item version.
     • Validated the scale's structural validity, internal consistency, and measurement stability.

Research Outcomes

• Specific Results

  1. Successfully developed and validated a 12-item "Perceived System Curiosity" (PSC) scale, distributed across three subscales.
  2. Each subscale measures the system's Explorative, Investigative, and Social curiosity dimensions.
  3. Experimental results demonstrated high internal consistency (overall Cronbach’s α=0.92) and confirmed the scientific validity and stability of the measurement dimensions through multiple validation steps.

• Advantages Over Existing Solutions

  1. Addresses the lack of standardized scales in existing research, enabling more systematic and comparable measurements of system curiosity.
  2. Results clearly indicate that Investigative and Social curiosity are independent yet related dimensions in users' perceptions, further refining the concept of curiosity.

• Experimental or Evaluation Results

  1. Users scored curious systems significantly higher than non-curious systems, indicating that the scale effectively distinguishes systems with varying levels of curiosity.
  2. The confirmed three-factor structure represents distinct dimensions of curiosity and demonstrates significant convergent validity with existing theoretical models (e.g., Social Intelligence Scales).

• Limitations and Future Directions

  1. Limitations:
     • The study primarily relied on online survey data, which may introduce selection bias in the sample.
     • The scale does not include reverse-coded items, potentially leading to response bias.
     • The scale items, derived from human curiosity theories, require further validation for their applicability to system behaviors.
  2. Future Directions:
     • Validate the scale's external validity across more diverse populations and interaction environments.
     • Explore how users' perceptions of system curiosity influence interaction experiences and task performance.
     • Develop system curiosity optimization methods or design guidelines tailored to specific scenarios.

Conclusion

This study introduces and validates the "Perceived System Curiosity" scale, addressing a critical gap in the field of user perception research. The scale lays a foundation for designing smarter and more human-centered systems. In practical applications, the scale can assist designers and researchers in effectively evaluating and optimizing the relationship between system behavior and user experience.