SCIENTIFIC CHARACTER AND SCIENTIFIC LITERACY ACROSS FOUR SOUTHEAST ASIAN COUNTRIES: A PISA 2022 ANALYSIS OF CURIOSITY AND INTEREST IN SCIENCE WITH IMPLICATIONS FOR PHYSICS EDUCATION

Abstract

Scientific literacy is essential for enabling young people to interpret evidence, explain natural phenomena, and participate responsibly in societies increasingly shaped by science and technology. This study investigated how two dimensions of scientific character - curiosity and interest in science - are associated with scientific literacy across Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand, and considered their implications for character-oriented physics education. A comparative quantitative design was employed using PISA 2022 data from 35,609 students. Scientific literacy was represented by ten science plausible values, curiosity by CURIOAGR, and interest in science by the item identifying science as a favorite subject; socio-economic status (ESCS) and gender were included as covariates. Country-specific multiple regression analyses revealed that curiosity was positively associated with scientific literacy in all four countries. Interest in science showed positive adjusted associations in Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand, but a small negative association in Indonesia. ESCS emerged as the strongest predictor in every country. The models explained 10.6% of variance in Indonesia, 19.7% in Malaysia, 21.4% in Singapore, and 26.7% in Thailand. These findings indicate that scientific character is meaningfully associated with scientific literacy, although its contribution varies across national contexts and remains strongly conditioned by socio-economic inequality. The study underscores the importance of physics instruction that deliberately cultivates curiosity, sustained scientific engagement, evidence-based reasoning, and equitable access to meaningful inquiry, thereby supporting scientifically literate and responsible global citizens.