The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTC
IntroductionThe key role of L2 grit has been acknowledged in English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ linguistic and psychological development. However, there is still debate regarding the role of L2 grit in enhancing EFL learners’ willingness to communicate (WTC) in L2. Furthermore, due to the...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1621340/full |
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| author | Xiaoming Chen Areej Radhi Alruwaili Mostafa Azari Noughabi Ameneh Ghasemi Changhui Zhen |
| author_facet | Xiaoming Chen Areej Radhi Alruwaili Mostafa Azari Noughabi Ameneh Ghasemi Changhui Zhen |
| author_sort | Xiaoming Chen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionThe key role of L2 grit has been acknowledged in English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ linguistic and psychological development. However, there is still debate regarding the role of L2 grit in enhancing EFL learners’ willingness to communicate (WTC) in L2. Furthermore, due to the novelty of the concept of psychological capital (PsyCap) in the field of foreign language education, little is known about its mediating role in the relationship between L2 grit and WTC.MethodsThe current study used valid, online questionnaires and employed structural equation modelling (SEM) to test whether Chinese EFL learners’ (N = 664) PsyCap can mediate the relationship between their domain-specific grit and WTC.ResultsThe results indicated that Chinese EFL learners’ PsyCap partially mediated the relationship between L2 grit and WTC. Therefore, L2 grit impacted EFL learners’ WTC in L2 both directly and indirectly through their positive psychological resources such as optimism, resilience, efficacy, and hope.DiscussionThe findings highlight the criticality of positive psychological states in language classroom settings where EFL learners can enhance their tendency to communicate in L2 with higher levels of perseverance of effort and consistency of interest. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4bc522cccd1a42d9b7e2134f84ca1db7 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
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| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj-art-4bc522cccd1a42d9b7e2134f84ca1db72025-08-20T02:35:59ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782025-07-011610.3389/fpsyg.2025.16213401621340The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTCXiaoming Chen0Areej Radhi Alruwaili1Mostafa Azari Noughabi2Ameneh Ghasemi3Changhui Zhen4School of Public and Basic Courses, Bengbu Medical University, Bengbu, ChinaDepartment of English Language, College of Arts, Jouf University, Sakaka, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of English Language and Literature, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar, IranDepartment of English Language and Literature, Al-Zahra University, Tehran, IranSchool of Public and Basic Courses, Bengbu Medical University, Bengbu, ChinaIntroductionThe key role of L2 grit has been acknowledged in English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ linguistic and psychological development. However, there is still debate regarding the role of L2 grit in enhancing EFL learners’ willingness to communicate (WTC) in L2. Furthermore, due to the novelty of the concept of psychological capital (PsyCap) in the field of foreign language education, little is known about its mediating role in the relationship between L2 grit and WTC.MethodsThe current study used valid, online questionnaires and employed structural equation modelling (SEM) to test whether Chinese EFL learners’ (N = 664) PsyCap can mediate the relationship between their domain-specific grit and WTC.ResultsThe results indicated that Chinese EFL learners’ PsyCap partially mediated the relationship between L2 grit and WTC. Therefore, L2 grit impacted EFL learners’ WTC in L2 both directly and indirectly through their positive psychological resources such as optimism, resilience, efficacy, and hope.DiscussionThe findings highlight the criticality of positive psychological states in language classroom settings where EFL learners can enhance their tendency to communicate in L2 with higher levels of perseverance of effort and consistency of interest.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1621340/fullL2 gritpsychological capitalL2 WTCstructural equation modelingEFL learners |
| spellingShingle | Xiaoming Chen Areej Radhi Alruwaili Mostafa Azari Noughabi Ameneh Ghasemi Changhui Zhen The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTC Frontiers in Psychology L2 grit psychological capital L2 WTC structural equation modeling EFL learners |
| title | The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTC |
| title_full | The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTC |
| title_fullStr | The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTC |
| title_full_unstemmed | The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTC |
| title_short | The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between EFL learners’ L2 grit and L2 WTC |
| title_sort | mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between efl learners l2 grit and l2 wtc |
| topic | L2 grit psychological capital L2 WTC structural equation modeling EFL learners |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1621340/full |
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