How Indonesian National Character Dimensions are Conceptualized Across Developmental Periods: A Qualitative Study of Parents and Adolescents

Indonesia’s national development agenda identifies eight dimensions of national character through the Program Penguatan Karakter dan Jati Diri Bangsa under the RPJMN 2025-2029. However, little is known about how parents and adolescents interpret these dimensions in everyday life across children’s developmental periods. This qualitative study explored conceptualisations of religiosity, morality, health, intelligence and creativity, hard work, discipline and orderliness, independence, and social usefulness. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 183 participants across 20 Indonesian cities and regencies: 136 parents of children aged 0-18 years and 47 adolescents aged 12-18 years. Parents’ mean age was 38.4 years (SD = 8.6), and adolescents’ mean age was 16.3 years (SD = 2.2). Data were analysed thematically, treating the eight policy-defined dimensions as deductive analytic domains while developing themes and subthemes inductively from participants’ accounts. Findings revealed both shared and divergent meanings across participant groups. Parents of children in early childhood emphasised observable behaviours and everyday routines; those of children in middle childhood highlighted school, peers, rules, reasoning, and responsibility; and parents of adolescents emphasised self-regulation, personal principles, and future preparation. Adolescents contributed distinct first-person perspectives involving agency, relationships, self-management, and anticipated adult roles. Participants also broadened, differentiated, and sometimes questioned the predefined dimensions, with several domains showing conceptual overlap. These cross-sectional differences indicate that the dimensions are understood through developmentally and culturally situated meanings rather than uniform behavioural indicators. The findings provide a foundation for future research and for designing developmentally and culturally appropriate parenting and educational resources.