The Role of EFL Writing Self-Efficacy and Writing Strategy in Writing Performance

Document Type : مقالات علمی پژوهشی

Authors
F. Moradi 1
G. H. Khajavy 2
S. E. Golparvar 3
1 MA Graduate Student, Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Humanities, University of Bojnord, Bojnord, Iran
2 Associate Professor, Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Humanities, University of Bojnord, Bojnord, Iran
3 3 Assistant Professor, Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Humanities, University of Bojnord, Bojnord, Iran
10.48311/LRR.15.6.405
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the role of writing self-efficacy and writing strategy in writing performance. To this aim, 110 Participants filled out two questionnaires including writing self-efficacy questionnaire and writing strategy questionnaire and composed an argumentative writing and a narrative writing chosen from TOEFL writing tasks. The data showed no significant relationship between writing self-efficacy and writing strategy use. There was a significant relationship between writing self-efficacy and writing achievement. Furthermore, a negative relationship was found between writing strategy and writing performance. Results of multiple regression showed that writing self-efficacy was the only significant predictor of writing performance. The outcomes of this study can help teachers to improve their students’ writing.



1. Introduction

Different factors affect writing in a second/foreign language (L2) such as cognitive, emotional, linguistic, and social factors (Anastasiou & Michail, 2013; Hayes, 2012; Graham & Perin, 2007). Two important factors influencing writing performance are self-efficacy and writing strategies (Ghoorchaei & Khosravi, 2019Pajares, 2003; Schunk & Pajares, 2010). Although writing strategies and writing self-efficacy are important factors influencing writing performance, there has not been sufficient research on these two variables in the context of teaching English as a foreign language, especially in the academic context of Iran, where learners' writings are traditionally evaluated based on grammatical rules and without considering their beliefs about writing and language strategies (Amiri & Saeedi, 2017; Birjandi & Malmir, 2007). Additionally, only a few previous studies in the context of teaching English as a foreign language have examined how the interaction between writing self-efficacy and writing strategies contributes to writing performance, and it is unclear which of these two factors has a greater impact on writing performance. The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between writing self-efficacy, writing strategies, and writing performance among Iranian English language students. It is worth noting that previous studies have not compared the impact of writing strategies and writing self-efficacy across different writing genres. To this end, this study compares the role of writing strategies and writing self-efficacy in argumentative and narrative writing exercises.

Research Question(s)

The following research questions were formulated:

1. Is there a significant relationship between writing self-efficacy and writing strategies among English language learners

2. Is there a significant relationship between English language learners' writing self-efficacy and their writing performance in narrative and argumentative genres?

3. Is there a significant relationship between English language learners' writing strategies and their writing performance in narrative and argumentative genres?

4. Can writing self-efficacy and writing strategies significantly predict English language learners' writing performance in narrative and argumentative genres?



2. Literature Review

Writing self-efficacy refers to students' beliefs in their abilities to successfully complet writing tasks (Pajares & Valiante, 1997). Previous research has indicated that language learners with higher levels of writing self-efficacy produce better writing (Pajares, 2003; Schunk & Pajares, 2010). In addition, Writing strategies are defined as techniques that L2 learners use to complete a eriting task more efficiently (Collins, 1998). Resrach has indicated that more succesful L2 writers use more effective writing strategies during their writing (Ghoorchaei & Khosravi, 2019). This implies that these two factors are important for L2 writing.



3. Methodology

In this study, 110 participants were selected through convenience sampling, including 61 undergraduate students and 49 graduate students majoring in English Language Teaching at a public university in Iran. The age range of the participants was from 19 to 35 years (M = 27.86, SD = 7.49), and the sample consisted of 30 men and 80 women. To measure writing self-efficacy, we used Teng et al.’s (2017) questionnaire on a 7 point Likert-type scale and to measure writing strategies, we used Hwang et al.’s (2017) scale on a 5 point Likert-type scale. In addition, to assess participants’ writing performance we asked them to write one narrative writing task and one argumentative writing task, both should include between 200 to 300 words. To achieve inter-rater reliability, two different raters separately assessed all the writings and assigned a score between 0 and 6 for each of the two pieces of writing.



4. Results

With regard to the first research question, our findings did not show any significant relationship between writing self-efficacy and writing staregy use (r = -.072). Then, we examined the relations between self-efficacy and writing performance. Results indicated a positive correlation between self-efficacy and narrative writing performance (r = .282) as well as between self-efficacy and argumentative writing performance (r = .223). Interestingly, with regard to the third research question, we found negative correlations between writing strategies and both narrative writing (r = -.311) and argumentative writing (r = -.273) tasks. Finally, we found that while self-efficacy was a positive predictor of narrative and argumentative tasks, writing strategy use was a negative predictor of narrative and argumentative tasks

Keywords

Subjects

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Volume 15, Issue 6 - Serial Number 84
January and February 2024
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