How do harm to people’s curiosity – BBC

According to ancient Greek myth, as a punishment for the abduction of people for their fire by Prometheus, Zeus created a curious girl – Pandora. She knew that it was dangerous to open the vessel with a heavy lid, sent by the gods. But feminine curiosity was impossible to curb, and when nobody saw, Pandora lifted the lid. From the vessel immediately on the world scattered misery and trouble, and slammed a lid on the bottom left one hope

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Now, scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison have found that the effect of Pandora – the desire to learn something terrible and sinister – is relevant for most people. The text of the study can be available in the journal Psychological Science.

Scientists have conducted a series of experiments. In the first experiment, was attended by 54 students. They were invited to the laboratory and offered before the start of the study to explore the stun pen, which allegedly remained from the previous experiment.

If you click on a handle in his hand strikes an unpleasant electric charge.

The handles were three different colors – red, green and yellow. Red means that the pen is charged, the green – that the pen is not charged, and yellow – is unknown, falls into the hands of the electric charge or not

The experiment showed that the volunteers hardly touched the green and red handles,. but actively pushes a button on the yellow handles, trying to find out their current hit or not

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In the second experiment, the students were given 30 pens of three colors – and again it turned out that the volunteers ignored red and green pens, but with interest find out which of the yellow handles charged, and what – no

“curiosity made Pandora opened a box of troubles – just as people can not resist the curiosity and trying to learn deliberately unpleasant things – says study author Bowen Ruan. – In our view, curiosity is due to remain in fear of the unknown

People think it is better to unpleasant truth than the unknown. “.

In the third experiment, the students planted for computers. The volunteers saw images 48 icons monitor. By clicking on the icon labeled “nails” heard the sound that occurs when the nail is carried on board. By clicking on the icon with the word “water” experiment participants could enjoy the sound of running water.

There was a third type icon. By clicking on these icons could be heard as an unpleasant sound of nails, and a pleasant murmur of the water

Once again, the majority of students chose the icons with unpredictable results

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In this case, it turned out that the volunteers who have not clicked on a third type of badges, feel much happier after the experiment than “lovers of the unknown».

According to the study authors, “while curiosity is considered as a human good, it can often be a human curse.

often we we can not resist the desire to learn deliberately unpleasant information. ”

Earlier curiosity was seen mostly as a positive phenomenon, leading to new knowledge and represents the root of curiosity. According to scientists, largely curiosity dependent on external factors, the environment, as well as the previously obtained knowledge of the experience of the subject.