2.7. Previous studies and research gaps
2.7.1. Studies on the influencing factors of WTC
Many researchers have recently tried to investigate situational factors that affect learners’
WTC in a second language. Previous studies have shown that L2 learners’ WTC is influenced by some characteristics of their interlocutors, such as familiarity with the interlocutor (e.g., Kang, 2005; Riasati, 2012), the interlocutors' participation and cooperation (e.g., Pawlak & Mystkowska-Wiertelak, 2015; Riasati, 2012), as well as other demographic features of the interlocutors (e.g., Cao, 2011; Eddy-U, 2015; Kang, 2005;
Pawlak et al., 2016; Riasati, 2012).
Nevertheless, other studies perceived the teacher as a more influential factor than their classmates in contributing to their willingness to talk in L2 classrooms (Lee, 2009).
Research (e.g., Cao, 2011; Fallah, 2014; Peng, Zhang, & Chen, 2017) highlights that teacher support could reduce the distance and enhance close relationships with students by incorporating both verbal and non-verbal cues such as encouragement, confirmation, and smile. Other research emphasizes the importance of the teacher’s teaching style and classroom management (e.g., Cameron, 2013; Peng, 2012; Riasati, 2012; Zarrinabadi, 2014). For instance, Zarrinabadi (2014) suggested that students’ willingness to participate is influenced by the teacher’s time allocated to task preparation, topic selection, and error correction.
Discussion topics have also been found to influence L2 learners’ WTC. Students tend to gravitate towards topics they know and find interesting, which not only makes conversations easier but also boosts their confidence and willingness to communicate (Cao, 2011; Kang, 2005; MacIntyre & Legatto, 2011; Mystkowska-Wiertelak, 2016; Riasati,
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2012; Wolf, 2013). The interest and familiarity of a topic are closely tied to a student's background knowledge of that subject and the breadth of their vocabulary in the second language (MacIntyre & Legatto, 2011; Mystkowska-Wiertelak, 2016; Pawlak &
Mystkowska-Wiertelak, 2015).
Furthermore, group size was also identified as one of the factors contributing to or reducing WTC (Cao & Philip, 2006). Past studies supported that fewer rather than larger numbers of interlocutors were preferred by the learners.
Kang (2005) reported that situational WTC in L2 was the product of three interacting psychological conditions namely excitement, responsibility, and security. Security refers to feeling safe and free from the anxiety and apprehension associated with communicating in a second language, whereas excitement is related to the feeling of happiness and enjoyment when speaking. Moreover, responsibility points to the feeling of duty or obligation to communicate a message. He also stated that these conditions were co- constructed by interacting situational variables such as topic, interlocutors, and conversational context.
Regarding trait-like and enduring factors, numerous research pointed out factors that stemmed from the individuals. Firstly, students’ willingness to talk was associated with the feeling of anxiety or perceived competence. For example, students’ fear of being criticized for their pronunciation, grammar, etc can be easily prone to distraction and reduction in self-confidence, resulting in low WTC (Dửrnyei, 2005; Hashimoto, 2002). Yashima (2002) also pointed out the impact of nervousness and anxiety on their confidence in speaking.
This anxiety can impede their chances of socializing with others due to the lack of comfort (Dửrnyei & Ryan, 2015; Yashima et al., 2018).
Other several studies (e.g., Fallah, 2014; Khajavy et al., 2016) have emphasized the impact of confidence in contributing to learners’ WTC inside the L2 classroom. They described highly engaged students as being very self-assured. "Confidence is as crucial as the
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capacity to speak and listen" (Debbie & Christine, 2007, p. 118; MacIntyre & Doucette, 2010).
Previous research (Cetinkaya, 2005; Chu, 2008; Sun, 2008; Pavicic & Pozega, 2011; Oz, 2014; Jaradat, 2022) investigating factors contributing to WTC also pointed out that personality traits of extraversion, agreeableness, and openness had an important role in predicting and setting the psychological context for willingness to communicate in English.
These studies concluded that personality traits may greatly contribute to the production and promotion of willingness to communicate in a second language. However, personality is deemed as having an indirect relationship to WTC (MacIntyre et al, 1998; Ghonssoly et al, 2012; Cetinkaya, 2005; Komaraju and Karau, 2005; Kamarraju et al, 2009; Hart et al, 2007).
Motivation has also been found to be positively linked with L2 WTC since learners with higher levels of L2 motivation exhibit higher L2 WTC inside the classroom (Dửrnyei and Kormos, 2000; Fallah, 2014; Hashimoto, 2002; Khajavy et al., 2016; Lee, 2019; Lee and Drajati, 2019; Lee and Chen Hsieh, 2019; Lee and Lee, 2020; ). Furthermore, motivation has been found to both indirectly and directly affect L2 WTC. While it was regarded as a significant direct predictor of students’ L2 WTC in the studies of Cha and Kim (2013) and Lee and Drajati (2019), L2 motivation indirectly influenced L2 WTC through anxiety and self-confidence in the investigations of Khajavy et al. (2016) and Yu (2009).
It is seen that research investigating influences affecting WTC is generally categorized into situational and individual factors. Research focused on situational factors mostly investigates interlocutor, teacher’s support and wait time, discussion topics, and group size, while those involved individual factors generally consist of anxiety, perceived competence, self-confidence, personality traits, and motivation. Although there is a range of studies examining factors affecting WTC, no research has been conducted to investigate WTC in the context of MI-based lessons.
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