We investigated whether young children are curious about what could have been ("counterfactual curiosity"). In two experiments, children aged 4 and 5 years (N = 32 in Experiment 1, N = 24 in Experiment 2) played a matching game in which they turned over cards in the hope that they matched a picture. After choosing a card, children could use "x-ray glasses" to uncover unchosen cards. In Experiment 1, most children spontaneously used the glasses to peek at past alternatives, even when the outcome could no longer be altered. In Experiment 2, children concentrated their information search on alternatives that were within their control. In both experiments, children showed greater interest in counterfactual outcomes when the card they chose turned out not to match the picture. The findings suggest that young children are curious not only about what is but also about what could have been. Curiosity about alternative outcomes seems to precede counterfactual reasoning.

中文翻译：

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学龄前儿童的反事实好奇心。

我们调查了幼儿是否对可能发生的事情感到好奇（“反事实好奇心”）。在两个实验中，年龄为4岁和5岁的孩子（实验1中的N = 32，实验2中的N = 24）玩配对游戏，在游戏中他们翻了张纸牌，希望他们能匹配一张照片。选择卡片后，儿童可以使用“ X射线眼镜”来发现未选择的卡片。在实验1中，即使结果不再能够改变，大多数孩子还是自发地用眼镜窥视过去的选择。在实验2中，孩子们将他们的信息搜索集中在他们控制范围内的替代方案上。在这两个实验中，当孩子选择的卡片与图片不符时，他们对反事实结果表现出更大的兴趣。这些发现表明，幼儿不仅对现在的事物感到好奇，而且对可能发生的事情感到好奇。对替代结果的好奇心似乎先于反事实推理。