Domain-Specific Perspectives on Language Mindsets, Enjoyment, Anxiety, and Willingness to Communicate in A Chinese EFL Context
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The importance of practical language use is increasingly acknowledged by the academic community, yet few studies have adopted a domain-specific perspective to explore influencing factors of learners’ willingness to communicate (WTC). This study explores how speaking mindsets influence Chinese EFL (English as a foreign language) students’ speaking enjoyment, anxiety, and WTC among students based on Rational-Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT). To this end, we surveyed 222 Chinese university EFL learners, and a hypothesized model was assessed by partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Results indicated that a speaking growth mindset was positively correlated with WTC, while a speaking fixed mindset was negatively associated with WTC. Moreover, results showed that a fixed mindset might reduce speaking enjoyment, while a growth mindset does not mitigate speaking anxiety. Furthermore, the relationships between the two speaking mindsets and WTC were fully mediated by speaking enjoyment and speaking anxiety. Theoretically, the findings shed light on the underlying mechanisms of speaking mindsets, speaking emotions, and WTC, and provide practical implications for both EFL learners and instructors.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms: Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).References
Ahmed, I. A., & Soleimani, H. (2024). The Impact of the Kurdish University EFL Learners’ Personality Traits on their Willingness to Communicate. The Scientific Journal of Cihan University–Sulaimaniya, 8(1), 313–328.
Alrabai, F. (2022). Modeling the relationship between classroom emotions, motivation, and learner willingness to communicate in EFL: applying a holistic approach of positive psychology in SLA research. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(7), 2465-2483. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2053138
Bensalem, E. (2021). The impact of enjoyment and anxiety on English-language learners’ willingness to communicate. Vivat Academia, 155, 91–111. https://doi.org/10.15178/va.2022.155.e1310
Bernardo, A. B. (2023). Growth mindset and reading proficiency of ESL learners: examining the role of students’ socioeconomic status using PISA 2018 Philippine data. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 38(2), 675–693.
Burnette, J. L., O’boyle, E. H., VanEpps, E. M., Pollack, J. M., & Finkel, E. J. (2013). Mind-sets matter: a meta-analytic review of implicit theories and self-regulation. Psychological bulletin, 139(3), 655.
Chen, Z., Zhang, P., Lin, Y., & Li, Y. (2024). Interactions of trait emotional intelligence, foreign language anxiety, and foreign language enjoyment in the foreign language speaking classroom. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(2), 374–394.
Cheng, Y.-S. (2017). Development and preliminary validation of four brief measures of L2 language-skill-specific anxiety. System, 68, 15–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2017.06.009
Chin, W. W. (1998). The partial least squares approach to structural equation modeling. Modern methods for business research, 295(2), 295–336.
Dewaele, J.-M. (2019). The Effect of Classroom Emotions, Attitudes Toward English, and Teacher Behavior on Willingness to Communicate Among English Foreign Language Learners. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 38(4), 523–535. https://doi.org/10.1177/0261927x19864996
Dewaele, J.-M., Chen, X., Padilla, A. M., & Lake, J. (2019). The flowering of positive psychology in foreign language teaching and acquisition research. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 2128.
Dewaele, J.-M., & Li, C. (2020). Emotions in second language acquisition: A critical review and research agenda. Foreign Language World, 196(1), 34–49.
Dewaele, J. M., Guedat‐Bittighoffer, D., & Dat, M. A. (2024). Foreign language enjoyment overcomes anxiety and boredom to boost oral proficiency in the first year of English foreign language learning. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijal.12607
Dong, L. (2022). Mindsets as predictors for Chinese young language learners’ negative emotions in online language classes during the pandemic: mediating role of emotion regulation. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(10), 4316–4331. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2159032
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random house.
Ebn-Abbasi, F., Fattahi, N., Sayyahi, M. J., & Nushi, M. (2024). Language learners’ mindset and their academic engagement in online classrooms: The mediating role of achievement emotions. Asia Pacific Education Review, 25(1), 73–85.
Elahi Shirvan, M., Saeedy Robat, E., Alamer, A., Lou, N. M., & Barabadi, E. (2024). A multilevel meta-analysis of language mindsets and language learning outcomes in second language acquisition research. Educational Psychology Review, 36(1), 15.
Ellis, A. (1995). Changing rational-emotive therapy (RET) to rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT). Journal of Rational-Emotive and Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 13(2), 85–89.
Eren, A., & Rakıcıoğlu-Söylemez, A. (2023). Language mindsets, perceived instrumentality, engagement and graded performance in English as a foreign language students. Language Teaching Research, 27(3), 544–574.
Fathi, J., Pawlak, M., Saeedian, S., & Ghaderi, A. (2024). Exploring factors affecting foreign language achievement: The role of growth mindset, self-efficacy, and L2 grit. Language Teaching Research, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688241227603
Hair, J., & Alamer, A. (2022). Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) in second language and education research: Guidelines using an applied example. Research Methods in Applied Linguistics, 1(3). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rmal.2022.100027
Hair, J. F., Risher, J. J., Sarstedt, M., & Ringle, C. M. (2019). When to use and how to report the results of PLS-SEM. European Business Review, 31(1), 2–24. https://doi.org/10.1108/ebr-11-2018-0203
Henry, A., Thorsen, C., & MacIntyre, P. D. (2024). Willingness to communicate in a multilingual context: Part one, a time-serial study of developmental dynamics. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(4), 937–956.
Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sinkovics, R. R. (2009). The use of partial least squares path modeling in international marketing. In R. R. Sinkovics, & P. N. Ghauri, (Eds.), New challenges to international marketing (Vol. 20, pp. 277–319). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
Junaedi, F., Hanurawan, F., JanuSetiowati, A., & Ramli, M. (2022). Reducing the new inmates’ anxiety through rational emotive behavior therapy with patronage counseling technique. Emerging Science Journal, 6(2), 306–321.
Khajavy, G. H., & Aghaee, E. (2024). The contribution of grit, emotions and personal bests to foreign language learning. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(6), 2300–2314.
Khajavy, G. H., MacIntyre, P. D., & Barabadi, E. (2018). Role of the emotions and classroom environment in willingness to communicate: Applying doubly latent multilevel analysis in second language acquisition research. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 40(3), 605–624.
Khajavy, G. H., MacIntyre, P. D., & Hariri, J. (2021a). A closer look at grit and language mindset as predictors of foreign language achievement. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 43(2), 379–402.
Khajavy, G. H., Pourtahmasb, F., & Li, C. (2021b). Examining the domain-specificity of language mindset: A case of L2 reading comprehension. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 16(3), 208–220. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2021.1956936
Lee, J. S., & Taylor, T. (2022). Positive psychology constructs and Extramural English as predictors of primary school students’ willingness to communicate. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(7), 2898–2916. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2079650
Lou, N. M., & Noels, K. A. (2017). Measuring language mindsets and modeling their relations with goal orientations and emotional and behavioral responses in failure situations. The Modern Language Journal, 101(1), 214–243.
Lou, N. M., & Noels, K. A. (2020). Breaking the vicious cycle of language anxiety: Growth language mindsets improve lower-competence ESL students’ intercultural interactions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 61, Article 101847. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2020.101847
MacIntyre, P. D., Clément, R., Dörnyei, Z., & Noels, K. A. (1998). Conceptualizing willingness to communicate in a L2: A situational model of L2 confidence and affiliation. The Modern Language Journal, 82(4), 545–562.
Mercer, S., & Ryan, S. (2010). A mindset for EFL: Learners’ beliefs about the role of natural talent. ELT Journal, 64(4), 436–444.
Mesler, R. M., Corbin, C. M., & Martin, B. H. (2021). Teacher mindset is associated with development of students' growth mindset. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 76, Article 101299.
Mohammadi, R. R., Saeidi, M., & Abdollahi, A. (2023). Modelling the interrelationships among self-regulated learning components, critical thinking and reading comprehension by PLS-SEM: A mixed methods study. System, 117, Article 103120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2023.103120
Ozdemir, E., & Papi, M. (2021). Mindsets as sources of L2 speaking anxiety and self-confidence: the case of international teaching assistants in the U.S. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 16(3), 234–248. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2021.1907750
Papi, M., Bondarenko, A. V., Wawire, B., Jiang, C., & Zhou, S. (2019). Feedback-seeking behavior in second language writing: motivational mechanisms. Reading and Writing, 33, 485–505. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-019-09971-6
Papi, M., Wolff, D., Nakatsukasa, K., & Bellwoar, E. (2021). Motivational factors underlying learner preferences for corrective feedback: Language mindsets and achievement goals. Language Teaching Research, 25(6), 858–877, https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688211018808
Pekrun, R. (2006). The control-value theory of achievement emotions: Assumptions, corollaries, and implications for educational research and practice. Educational Psychology Review, 18(4), 315–341. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-006-9029-9
Peng, J.-E. (2012). Towards an ecological understanding of willingness to communicate in EFL classrooms in China. System, 40(2), 203–213.
Peng, J.-E., & Wang, Z. (2022). The predictive roles of enjoyment, anxiety, willingness to communicate on students’ performance in English public speaking classes. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 62(2), 485-508. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2022-0162
Peng, J.-E., & Woodrow, L. (2010). Willingness to Communicate in English: A Model in the Chinese EFL Classroom Context. Language Learning, 60(4), 834–876. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2010.00576.x
Sadoughi, M., & Hejazi, S. Y. (2023). How can L2 motivational self system enhance willingness to communicate? The contribution of foreign language enjoyment and anxiety. Current Psychology, 43, 2173–2185. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04479-3
Sari, S. A., Sugara, G. S., & Isti’adah, F. N. (2022). Effects of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy on Academic Grit. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 40(4), 857–878. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-022-00444-4
Shao, Q., & Gao, X. A. (2016). Reticence and willingness to communicate (WTC) of East Asian language learners. System, 63, 115–120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2016.10.001
Song, Z. (2024). Foreign Language Anxiety: A Review on Definition, Causes, Effects and Implication to Foreign Language Teaching. Journal of Education, Humanities and Social Sciences, 26, 795–799. https://doi.org/10.54097/4838f411
Subtirelu, N. (2014). A language ideological perspective on willingness to communicate. System, 42, 120–132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2013.11.004
Tenenhaus, M., Amato, S., & Esposito Vinzi, V. (2004). A global goodness-of-fit index for PLS structural equation modelling. Proceedings of the XLII SIS Scientific Meeting, 1, 739–742.
Thayati, S., Chusanachoti, R., & Sawekngam, W. (2024). Exploring Thai Undergraduate Students’ Language Mindsets: A Survey Analysis. Journal of Studies in the English Language, 19(1), 25–58.
Turner, M. J. (2016). Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), Irrational and Rational Beliefs, and the Mental Health of Athletes. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 1423. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01423
Wang, H., Peng, A., & Patterson, M. M. (2021a). The roles of class social climate, language mindset, and emotions in predicting willingness to communicate in a foreign language. System, 99, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2021.102529
Wang, H., Peng, A., & Patterson, M. M. (2021b). The roles of class social climate, language mindset, and emotions in predicting willingness to communicate in a foreign language. System, 99, Article 102529.
Wang, Y., Wu, H., & Wang, Y. Engagement and willingness to communicate in the L2 classroom: identifying the latent profiles and their relationships with achievement emotions. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2024.2379534
Wilang, J. D. (2024). Evaluating the Impact of the Language Mindset Toolkit among Thai Undergraduate Students. Education Sciences, 14(8), 844. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14080844
Xu, J., & Wang, Y. (2022). The differential mediating roles of ideal and ought-to L2 writing selves between growth mindsets and self-regulated writing strategies. System, 110, Article 102900. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2022.102900
Yao, Y., Guo, N. S., Wang, W., & Yu, J. (2021). Measuring Chinese junior high school students' language mindsets: What can we learn from young EFL learners’ beliefs in their language ability? System, 101, Article 102577. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2021.102577
Yao, Y., & Zhu, X. (2024). Modeling Chinese high school EFL writers’ language mindsets, goal orientations, and feedback-seeking behavior: The interaction effect between language mindsets and writing competence. Reading and Writing, 37(3), 539–561. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-022-10339-6
Zarrinabadi, N., Rezazadeh, M., Karimi, M., & Lou, N. M. (2021). Why do growth mindsets make you feel better about learning and your selves? The mediating role of adaptability. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 16(3), 249–264. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2021.1962888
Zhang, L. J., Saeedian, A., & Fathi, J. (2022). Testing a model of growth mindset, ideal L2 self, boredom, and WTC in an EFL context. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(8), 3450–3465. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2100893
