Abstract

This study aimed to validate the Morbid Curiosity Scale (MCS) developed by Scrivner (2021) and confirm its psychometric properties. For this purpose, the research assessed the quality of the items and conducted exploratory factor analysis data from 145 adults (94 males, 51 females) in their 20s and 60s nationwide, and found that a five-factor structure consisting of 19 items was more appropriate than the original scale consisting of 24 items with four factors. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), convergent and discriminant validity, and reliability of the scale were analyzed in 250 adults (125 men and 125 women) in their 20s to 60s nationwide. First, CFA of construct validity showed that the Korean version of the K-MCS has an appropriate five-factor structure, i.e., a total of 19 items were explained by five factors: “minds of dangerous people,” “paranormal danger,” “body violation,” “interpersonal violence,” and “exorcism.” The paper also examined the convergent and discriminant validity of the Korean version of the Curiosity and Exploration Inventory, the Korean Disgust Scale Revised, the Korean Short Form Dark-4, the Korean Templer Death Anxiety Scale, the Korean Affective Lability Scale-Short Form, the Korean Patient Heath Questionnaire-9, the Korean Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, and the Korean Perceived Stress Scale. We also examined the internal consistency of the K-MCS and found it to be adequate. Finally, the applications of the scale, limitations of the study, and suggestions for future research were discussed.