Adolescents’ political interest: Associations with autonomous study motivation and perceived social conflict

Political interest is known to emerge during adolescence, yet little is understood about its psychological correlates. Grounded in self-determination theory and sociopolitical development perspectives, this study investigates the associations between autonomous academic motivation, perceived social conflict, and adolescents’ political interest. Analyzing nationally representative data from 7718 Korean adolescents, we find that both factors are positively associated with political interest. Importantly, the positive association between autonomous academic motivation and political interest is significantly weaker among older adolescents than among younger adolescents. In contrast, the association between perceived social conflict and political interest is stronger among older adolescents. These age-related patterns suggest that political interest is more closely associated with intellectual curiosity among younger adolescents and with sensitivity to societal tensions among older adolescents. These results highlight the importance of age-tailored civic education that supports curiosity early on and critical social awareness later.