Informal digital learning of English and EFL learners’ willingness to communicate: investigating the mediating role of L2 grit

ABSTRACT

Informal digital learning of English (IDLE) has recently become a heated debate in the realm of computer-assisted language learning. Despite the potential benefits of IDLE, the mediating role of English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ domain-specific grit in the relationship between IDLE and willingness to communicate (WTC) has yet to receive due attention. Therefore, the current study explored how L2 grit mediated the relationship between IDLE and WTC. A sample of 313 Iranian EFL learners filled out three questionnaires. The results of the mediation model analysis conducted with AMOS indicated that L2 grit fully mediated the association between IDLE and WTC. In other words, it was figured out that IDLE impacts learners’ L2 WTC indirectly through their grit. The findings of this study implied that enhancing perseverance and passion for pursuing long-term goals can help EFL learners benefit from IDLE-based activities for communicative purposes. Ultimately, suggestions for future research are offered.

KEYWORDS:

• Informal digital learning of English
• willingness to communicate in L2
• L2 grit
• EFL learners

Acknowledgements

The authors sincerely thank all the EFL learners who participated in the study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Authors’ contribution

All authors have materially participated in the research and article preparation. In addition, all authors have approved the final article.

Consent to participate

Informed consent to participate was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Consent for publication

Informed consent for publication was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.