Curious minds, better grades: Study finds curiosity linked to academic success among teens
While many factors a correlated with a student's grade, curiosity — not grit or self-control — emerged as the factor with the biggest link to academic success among 15-year-old students in South Korea, according to a new analysis of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) data.
The Korea Education Development Institute revealed the findings in its spring 2025 issue, drawing from the 2022 PISA assessment, which surveyed approximately 5,600 Korean students.
PISA, run every three years by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, evaluates how well 15-year-old students worldwide have acquired the knowledge and skills needed to participate in society.
Alongside cognitive subjects like science, mathematics, reading and creative thinking, the 2022 edition also assessed social-emotional competencies such as curiosity, perseverance, emotional control and stress resistance.
Korean students in the higher achievement groups scored significantly higher in curiosity than those in lower groups across all subjects.
Perseverance also showed consistent correlation, with high scorers outperforming their peers in every subject. Emotional control revealed was not linked to test scores, except in science and math.
Interestingly, in stress resistance, lower-achieving students often scored higher than their higher-performing peers in subjects excluding science and math.
When comparing Korean students' social-emotional competencies to the OECD average, emotional control stood out as Korea's strongest suit.
Korean students scored 0.18 on average in controlling their feelings, outperforming the OECD average of –0.01 by 0.19 points. Korean students also slightly exceeded the OECD average in curiosity and stress resistance, though they fell slightly behind in perseverance.
"Students with high social-emotional skills are better equipped to manage stress, maintain healthy interpersonal relationships, and navigate collaborative environments," Lee Ju-yeon, the KEDI researcher, said. "These competencies are essential not only for academic achievement but also for a successful and fulfilling life."
The results added the importance of integrating social-emotional learning into educational policy and classroom practices while pointing out how students' ability to self-direct learning is crucial in digital education, as emotional regulation is directly connected to confidence in learning.
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