Speaker
Description
Exploration plays a central role in the interaction of organisms with their environment, and it is studied across disciplines. However, interdisciplinary exchange might be hampered by different understandings of exploration. Are researchers indeed referring to the same underlying process when investigating exploration? Differences might be due to operational versus conceptual definitions. While limits of what can feasibly be tested might give rise to such differences, there could also be variation due to alternative perspectives on the role information gathering and movement decisions should play in exploration. We present the results of a scoping review of definitions used in the most cited papers on exploration across life sciences. Highlighting differences that may arise among research fields, we discuss the interplay between (working) definitions, methods and interpretation of results across disciplines. By exposing differences and communalities in definitions, we hope to increase our understanding of what researchers mean by “exploration”. Ultimately, a common terminology will facilitate interdisciplinary discussions on how curiosity and exploration are connected or where they may or may not overlap.
