The Infant and Toddler Curiosity Questionnaire: a German validation

Curiosity plays an important role in early learning, but measures of trait curiosity in infancy and toddlerhood are still limited. The Infant and Toddler Curiosity Questionnaire (ITCQ) was recently developed as a caregiver questionnaire for children aged 5 to 24 months and validated in a UK sample. The present study examined the ITCQ in a German sample to test its applicability in a different cultural context and to support cross-national research on early curiosity. 291 German-speaking caregivers completed the German version of the ITCQ and a temperament questionnaire. Items targeted young children’s observable exploration behaviour and were evaluated on a 7-point Likert scale. Factor analyses indicated an overall acceptable fit of the original three-factor structure, although the Investigative subscale showed weaker fit and may require further refinement. We further observed mostly good internal consistency for the overall scale and subscales, good test-retest reliability, and curiosity was positively associated with Surgency and Effortful Control, while Negative Affect was largely unrelated to the curiosity dimensions except for a small negative association with Interactive curiosity.Taken together, the findings largely replicate the original results and extend them to an independent German sample. They enable further research on trait curiosity in young children, both locally and across cultures, while also highlighting the importance of remaining attentive to culture-specific nuances. More broadly, the current results provide a solid foundation for future work on how curiosity develops and shapes learning across early childhood.