Comparative Psychology as Unified Psychology: The Case of Curiosity and Other Novelty-Related Behavior

Abstract

The comparative study of human and nonhuman animals covers the full range of psychological phenomenon, and so comparative psychology already exists as a form of general psychology. The potential of comparative psychology to bring together many aspects of the field of psychology is illustrated through a review of studies exploring curiosity in a variety of species. The issue of an organism's response to novelty was recognized as an important research subject in the era of Darwin. Since that time, considerable empirical and theoretical material on various aspects of behavior associated with new stimuli has been accumulated. This research additionally illustrates the utility of integrative levels theory, which enables a multilevel, comprehensive analysis of behavior. Comparative psychologists played important roles in the history of most of psychology's subdisciplines, and present-day comparative psychologists continue to contribute insights into a startlingly broad range of psychological phenomenon. Further, appreciation for the higher-level research program provided by comparative work provides a larger context that helps ground the study of human psychology.