A Journey Down the Path of Curiosity: Exploring the Crossroads of Motivation Leading to Innovatio

What separates curiosity in humans from lower animals is the human being's ability to seek additional information in order to "fill the well of knowledge" (Berlyne, 1954, p. 180). Empirical research studies, popular news articles, and biographies contend there is a deprivation of curiosity, motivation, and innovative ideas for students and adults. Schools are held responsible for adequately preparing students for a society that changes by the minute. The workplace lacks a stimulation of the mind resulting in ill-content, unengaged, and ultimately uninnovative adults. Curiosity and motivation are lacking in the workplace, but evident in innovators, therefore the purpose of this research is to describe the essence of the relationship between curiosity and motivation for innovators on the path to innovation. The research poses two foundational questions: What are the lived experiences for innovators on their path of curiosity and motivation to innovation?; What if any relationship exists between curiosity and motivation for innovators? This research used a phenomenological methodology which Creswell (2014) iterates "is an approach for exploring and understanding the meaning individuals or groups ascribe to a social or human problem" (p. 4). Utilizing a semi-structured interview with seven innovators who self-identified as curious, the researcher asked questions formulated against Berlyne's (1954) definition of curiosity, Deci and Ryan's (1985, 2000) framework for Self-determination Theory (SDT), and Dyer, Gregersen, and Christensen's (2011) framework for the Innovator's DNA. The innovators were chosen based on opportunistic or snowball sampling strategies to provide a rich sampling pool (Creswell, 2014).;The research results demonstrated that innovators exhibited curiosity and motivation throughout their life and were keenly aware of their identity. They engaged in relationships that fueled their curiosity and motivation, and were driven to solve problems, ultimately for a higher purpose. Through the lens of the four overarching themes: identity, problem-solving, relationships, and conditions, the similarities in the innovators' stories outweighed their differences. Findings suggest that a symbiotic relationship exists between curiosity and motivation. For practitioners, the key is cultivating the conditions to foster and enhance both curiosity and motivation, primarily through problem-solving and relationships, ultimately leading to innovation.