The Effect of Learning Strategy and Self-Efficacy on Speaking Competence of Higher Vocational College Students: Anxiety as a Mediator

Abstract

The three key affective and cognitive factors that affect language learning are learning strategy, self-efficacy, and learning anxiety. The ability to speak English is becoming more and more important, particularly among students in higher vocational colleges in China. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship of learning strategy, self-efficacy, learning anxiety and speaking competence among Chinese college EFL students in Heilongjiang province, China. It further seeks to understand whether anxiety acted as a mediating variable in the relationship between learning strategy and speaking competence, between self-efficacy and speaking competence. This study proposed a model that incorporates learning strategy, self-efficacy, anxiety, and speaking competence for English language learners. A survey questionnaire was used to gather data from college students. The questionnaires were sent to 493 Chinese college students. This study utilized a random sampling approach. The data analysis tools used in this survey are Process v4 and SPSS. The results showed learning strategy, learning anxiety and self-efficacy had a significant relationship with speaking competence. Anxiety mediated the relationship between self-efficacy and speaking competence, learning strategy and speaking competence. Thus when learners have a high degree of self-efficacy, they have a low level of English language anxiety and the more strategies students use, the less anxiety they have, resulting in a more excellent speaking performance.