The Role of L2 Grit and Foreign Language Enjoyment in Chinese EFL Learners' Willingness to Communicate at an EMI University

Abstract

The effects of intrapersonal characteristics and environmental factors on students’ second language (L2) learning have been prevailing topics among researchers. Nevertheless, insufficient attention has been paid to the variable L2 grit, which is generally regarded as a positive trait predictive of academic success. Therefore, aiming to fill in the previous gap, this study illustrates a quantitative methods study that focuses on the following issues: (1) What are the correlations between L2 grit, foreign language enjoyment, and English-Medium Instruction (EMI) university students’ L2 WTC in the classroom? (2) How do L2 grit and foreign language enjoyment predict EMI university students’ L2 WTC in the classroom? Three adopted scales were used to collect the required data. After that, Pearson correlation analysis and multiple regression analysis were employed to further analyze the data. The results reveal that L2 grit does not serve as a predictive factor for students’ L2 WTC, while foreign language enjoyment can predict students’ L2 WTC positively to a significant extent. This research may contribute to second language learning and teaching by demonstrating the interrelationships among three essential academic achievement predictors.