Contributions of Achievement Emotions to Male and Female EFL Learners’ Language Achievement

INTRODUCTION

Language education is one of the greatest stimulating tasks one has to handle. This enduring process, evidently, encompasses the educational and professional assistance along with systematic, attentive and conscious engagements in language learning process. Consequently, personal factors and thoughts related to how one learns a language are observed as an important factor in academic mastery and achievement of the foreign language. The characteristics of students in applied linguistics have conventionally been inspected in the framework of individual differences (IDs) that are perceived to be features that mark an individual as a separate and exclusive human being.

The extensiveness of individual differences and learners’ emotional status has made it impossible for researchers to scrutinize all variables that might affect the progression of learning and teaching. The teacher must distinguish that everybody has their own instinctive assets, capabilities, and emotions that can foster or prevent their attempts in language learning. Thus, it can be argued that different social, cognitive, and affective factors are believed to affect the second or foreign language acquisition process. Among these issues, achievement emotions are the crucial factors affecting English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ achievement. Achievement emotions denote the different emotions practiced in the academic situations universally that are connected unswervingly to achievement events or accomplishment consequences (Pekrun, 2006). Emotions are considered to be multilayered, whole-body replies that require harmonized adaptations in different fields of behavior, subjective experience, and peripheral physiology as declared by Mauss et al. (2007).

Paying attention to affective factors and learners’ emotions in academic field in a logical way can foster learners’ learning achievement. Investigating dissimilar emotions in language-learning and their consequences from a rather positive aspect than a negative one leads to a balanced idea about how language learners can adjust their emotions, which can finally lead to second language acquisition (SLA) successfully (Oxford, 2016). As it is asserted by Taheri et al. (2019), second/foreign language learning (SLA) is totally altered from first language acquisition. In this regard, specialists in second or foreign language acquisition have talked briefly about the differences among EFL learners. Although there has already been some research that have studied how emotions are related to ensuing learners’ achievement (Putwain et al., 2018), the kinds of emotions learners experience (especially advanced learners in EFL settings), which can lead to achievement, is comparatively under-searched.

The main problem in this study is that EFL learners and teachers are mostly unaware of the affective factors and learners’ emotions and their efficiency in the learning process. When they realized the applicability of personal and affective factors, they can use their knowledge in promoting and improving learning performance and avoiding inhibiting emotions that may decrease the quality of learning outcomes among female and male EFL learners. In this regard, although the number of language institutes is growing increasingly worldwide, the quality of their instruction and the expected results is not satisfactory; that is to say, after spending so many years of learning English, learners may still be unable to use it practically and fluently. This point is revealed by Falahati and Gholamalizadeh (2019), showing that the implementation of various methods and materials might not be optimal, leading to a separation between desired and achieved results. In addition, it seems that most of EFL learners lose their primary interest in the progression of language learning. Consequently, it is probable that emphasizing learners’ emotions during language learning can not only maintain but also increase the level of the learners’ positive emotions and finally their language development. Regarding this matter, Hattie (2009) identified positive emotions as a key factor contributing to effective learning across various domains, including language acquisition.

Moreover, there are several studies that have scrutinized how important achievement emotions can be in language learning (e.g., Li, 2021; Putwain et al., 2018; Shao et al., 2020). The importance of emotions in language learning process have encouraged several scholars to examine the effect of emotions on language performance. Nevertheless, reviewing the related literature revealed the scarcity of the studies concerning the potential role of gender inequalities in examining the effect of achievement emotions on language accomplishment. Here, considering gender of the EFL learners seemed to need extra attention and investigation, especially in Iran despite existence of several previous studies. Thus, the current study aimed at investigating the contributions of achievement emotions to male and female EFL learners’ language achievement.

It is essential to mention that the current study is noteworthy for numerous whys and wherefores. Primarily, it might aid EFL curriculum designers and methodologists to improve teaching materials that potentially adjust countless means of instruction and learning, and suit learners’ personal characteristics and emotions. Furthermore, the current research might support learners by assisting them to study based on an amusing and operative style like selecting language-learning strategies and help to know themselves better. That is to say, the present study gains significance as the results can benefit both EFL learners and teachers and inform them about the importance of individual differences and emotions that exist among learners, and it is these discriminative features that make learners study a foreign language and get improved or step down. Therefore, it can be stated that learners’ affective states can make a difference between failure and success in the long run. 

LITERATURE REVIEW

According to Azizi, Namziandost, and Ashkani (2022), it is supposed that the principal goal of second/foreign language education is paving the ground for EFL learners to use English accurately and fluently in communicative contexts. In this regard, Mirzaei Shojakhanlou, Mahmoudi, and Farrokhi (2022) claimed that communication is commonly observed as the definitive objective of learning a foreign language. When it comes to language learning, there are varieties of factors and variables that could influence the way in which an EFL learner learns and communicates. Learners’ individual differences and emotions can be considered effective variables in the process of language learning. As mentioned by Pekrun (1992), learning is considered an emotional experience. The emotions that learners experience can affect their performance in evaluation and their general development (Raker et al., 2019). Some research has shown that the emotions that learners experience can affect their learning and achievement (Frenzel et al., 2007). This effect has been shown in the studies that were done on learners’ motivation. For instance, learners prefer to spend time and effort on the enjoyable and interesting activities rather than the activities or tasks that make them feel anxious or bored (Villavicencio & Bernardo, 2013). However, some researchers (e.g., Ainley et al., 2005; Krapp, 2005, as cited in Villavicencio & Bernardo, 2013) asserted that emotions could bring about and maintain learners’ interest in learning materials. It is also believed that emotions play significant roles in achieving goals and that emotions play crucial roles in educational contexts, specially the positive ones. Positive affects/emotions (e.g., joy, interest, hope, growth mindset, and gratitude) can bring about positive learning consequences (Goetz et al., 2006; Fathi et al., 2024).

Based on what is stated in some studies (e.g., Pekrun, 2002; Pekrun et al., 2006), in the Control-Value Theory (CVT) of achievement emotions, achievement emotions are considered the emotions that are directly related to activities of achievement or achievement results. Based on CVT, the close causes of achievement emotions are control assessments and value considerations. In addition, there are more distal individual antecedents that could influence individuals’ emotional experiences (e.g., learners’ achievement aims, motivational principles, and some other non-cognitive aspects like genetic dispositions, the classroom interactions, and the social-environmental contexts) (Soric et al., 2013). According to Tze et al. (2022), the CVT of achievement emotions is a well-established theoretical framework that demarcates the predictive associations among distal and proximal antecedents, academic emotions, and student engagement and achievement. Although most research anchored in CVT is conducted by educational psychologists, the theory is arguably applicable to the field of school psychology. As Soric et al. (2013) expressed, there are different kinds of emotions that learners experience in an educational context, and they can have opposite effects on their learning process and their performance, especially if these emotions are negative. Therefore, the methods that learners use to regulate their emotions are one of the important topics to study. Furthermore, achievement can be considered one of the most important notions in education, which can be considered the learners’ final achievement and also the future success criterion of the educational system (Ranjbar et al., 2017). As Pekrun (2006) also believed, achievement emotions can influence the cognitive, regulatory and motivational progressions, which can make learning and achievement possible and easy. Besides, they can cause psychological relaxation, happiness, and enjoyment of life. There exists also an emphasis on the notion that educational contexts are replete with emotional experiences that affect learners’ performance, interactions with others, and personal growth (Pekrun et al., 2007).

Some scholars (e.g., Frize et al., 1983; Weiner, 1985) supported that some attributions affect learners’ achievement. The attributions that learners often relate to their outcomes are: being hard working, lucky, and talented. Although learners attribute their attainment or failure to these attributions, the kind and amount of effort that they have in schools to learn their subjects can influence their success (Kiamanesh, 2004). Based on what Taheri et al. (2019) suggested, learners’ achievement depends on the learners’ ability to complete a task, which requires an increase in different aspects of learners’ cognitive and emotional aspects. As Pekrun et al. (2009) claimed, the proof for the association between achievement emotions, except performance and anxiety, was rather restricted.

For example, in some studies (e.g., Frenzel et al., 2007; Goetz et al., 2006; Helmke, 1993; Larson et al., 1985; Pekrun et al., 2002) positive relationships concerning enjoyment of learning and performance had been achieved, while Linnenbrink (2007) expressed that associations for overall positive affect emotions were inconsistent. The authors analyzed the emotions in specific domains and concentrated on the emotions (i.e., enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom) that learners experienced in the mathematics, German, Latin, and English domains. According to what was shown in the CVT and the obtained results of the pilot studies, the authors hypothesized that there existed a large organization of emotional experiences in specific domains. Their sample included 721 students who were from 7 to 10 grades. The confirmatory multitrait-multimethod factor analysis of the two-faceted dataset (emotions and domains) was supported by the assumptions related to the domain specificity. Additionally, by making use of multilevel analysis, the authors realized that learners’ emotions were significantly more domain-specific than their grades, while enjoyment was the most domain-specific emotion compared with the other three emotions which were under investigation.

According to Pekrun et al. (2009), there is limited explorations on the relationship between learners’ achievement emotions and their performance. Most of the empirical works (e.g., Melih, 2021; Pekrun, 2020) have shown anxiety as a negative forecaster in learners’ performance. Additionally, some research has concentrated on other achievement emotions like enjoyment and found it as a positive predictor of learners’ performance while some other emotions for instance anger, boredom, shame, and hopelessness were found as its negative predictors (Pekrun et al., 2009). The consequences of research directed to predict learners’ achievement came across with different results, but all have revealed the important role of cognitive capabilities and personality individualities in academic accomplishment (Paunonen & Ashton, 2001).

As Soric et al. (2013) expressed, there are different kinds of emotions that learners experience in an educational context, and they can have opposite effects on their learning process and their performance, especially if these emotions are negative. Thus, the methods that learners use to regulate their emotions are one of the important topics to study. With more emphasis on it, achievement can be considered one of the most important notions in education, which can be considered the learners’ final achievement and also the future success criterion of the educational system (Ranjbar et al., 2017). As Pekrun (2006) believed, achievement emotions can influence the cognitive, regulatory, and motivational procedures, which can make learning and achievement possible and easy. Besides, they can cause psychological relaxation, happiness, and enjoyment of life.

There has been also an investigation by Zhang (2019) who examined the association between foreign language (FL) performance and FL anxiety. In this study, 55 independent samples with over 10,000 participants were studied. Accordingly, compared to the other types of anxiety, learners’ FL listening anxiety showed the strongest relationship with FL performance. In contrast, FL anxiety in reading and test anxiety revealed weaker associations with FL performance. The correlation between anxiety and performance stayed steady through groups with dissimilar levels of language proficiency, signifying that the role of language anxiety is noticeable irrespective of the learners’ level of proficiency.

Chahkandi and EslamiRasekh (2017) examined students’ spontaneous and ongoing emotions via the experience sampling method. They analyzed 96 forms that students completed at random times and upon getting random signals in the EFL classes. The forms were analyzed grounded on the differences that existed between females and males in these fields: (1) the frequency of different emotions; (2) the activities that were related to EFL vs. the activities that were not; (3) the antecedents related to students’ emotional states; and (4) students’ making use of emotion regulation strategies and the valence related to their emotions. The general results showed that females and males were different in significant ways in various facets of emotional experience. First, female students outperformed in getting involved in both EFL-related tasks and thinking. Second, they reported that they experienced the class from a different emotional point of view. Predominantly, considering the comparison between females and males, the female students experienced greater amount of both anxiety and hope than males. Third, they were different in the degree that they accredited their experienced emotions to their teachers which means that teachers play a more crucial role in their female learners’ emotional outlooks.

Benattabou et al. (2021) analyzed the existing differences between males and females in language leaning. Based on the results of a test battery, the regional exam GPA, and an administered standard EFL achievement test, the obtained quantitative data which belonged to a large group of senior high school students which constituted a non-probability convenience sample that were drawn from the official records of Zerktouni high school, have been under exploration to gather information on the topic that was in question. As results of the Chi-Square test showed and the independent samples t-test proved, female learners outperformed their male peers explicitly at almost all of the basic language skills.

Pishghadam et al. (2016) declared that generally emotions play an important role in the learning process, particularly in foreign language learning. Even though with the growth of humanistic methods, sufficient consideration has been prearranged to the affective area in language learning, the emotions EFL learners experience concerning English language abilities in receptive and productive skills have not gained sufficient consideration. Hence, they investigated whether language skills play any role in stimulating emotions in EFL learners, or in other words, how language skills influence emotions of EFL learners. Thus, 20 EFL learners were interviewed to draw their opinions concerning the emotions they experienced in EFL courses, as a foundation for making the EFL Skills Emotions Questionnaire comprising 20 items. After that, 308 learners were asked to take the newly-designed scale. Later, a confirmatory factor analysis was utilized to validate the scale, and then EFL learners’ emotions generated by language skills were measured and compared using ANOVA. The obtained results showed that EFL learners experienced anger mostly over listening skills, shame over listening and speaking, hope, boredom, enjoyment and pride over speaking, and hopelessness over writing and listening, and finally, anxiety over all of language skills.

As mentioned earlier, emotions are central since they affect mediator variables like using executive functions, motivation, and complex learning strategies that consecutively, affect performance in test (Reilly & Sanchez-Rosas, 2021). Reilly and Sanchez-Rosas (2021) recognized the negative and positive achievement emotions that were practiced by 277 EFL Mexican university learners. The results indicated that unlike the preceding studies that showed the dominance of test anxiety on students’ testing experience, learners have the experience of positive feelings like hope more often than negative feelings ones like shame.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The present study was conducted to examine the contributions of EFL learners’ eight achievement emotions (i.e., hope, enjoyment, anxiety, pride, anger, boredom, shame, and hopelessness) to their English language achievement. Based on the above-mentioned points, it can be stated that paying attention to affective factors and learners’ emotions in academic field can foster their learning achievement. In this regard, the research questions below were posed in the study to investigate the contributions of achievement emotions to male and female EFL learners’ language achievement.

1. Which achievement emotion(s) is/are the best and significant predictor(s) of male and female EFL learners’ language achievement?
2. Which aspect(s) of achievement emotions is/are the best and significant predictor(s) of all participants’ language achievement?
3. Is there any significant difference between female and male learners’ achievement emotions?

METHOD

Participants

The population of the study included Iranian EFL learners at Iran Language Institute (ILI). The Cochran Formula (Cochran, 1977) was utilized in order to select the sample population of the study. The participants were 279 EFL learners at advanced level of proficiency in ILI, Tabriz branch. They included 131 female and 148 male learners with the age range of 15 to 40.

Materials and Instruments

Achievement Emotions Questionnaire (AEQ)

AEQ is considered an accessible tool for assessing emotions that arise in educational situations, since it is a self-report tool intended for measuring emotions in achievement settings (Davari et al., 2020). According to some researchers (e.g., Pekrun, 2006; Pekrun et al., 2005), the theoretical idea behind AEQ is developed based on the CVT (Davari et al., 2020). Based on its theories, Pekrun et al. (2005) designed AEQ for measuring the emotions learners would experience in achievement contexts. The emotions that are included in the AEQ are: Pride, Enjoyment, Anger, Shame, Hope, Anxiety, Boredom, and Hopelessness, experienced in achievement settings. AEQ items would assess learners’ achievement emotions (Davari et al., 2020). The reason for its popularity is that it covers various achievement emotions in different achievement settings (Bieleke et al., 2021).

AEQ is adopted from Davari et al. (2020). It is a 40-item Likert type questionnaire, which includes items related to both positive emotions [i.e., hope (4 items), pride (4 items), and enjoyment (7 items)] and negative emotions [shame (5 items), anger (4 items), anxiety (7 items), boredom (5 items), and hopelessness (4 items)]. Bearing in mind that the items in the original AEQ (Pekrun et al., 2005) were domain-specific, the word ‘English class’ was used in all items to make them contextualized. As Pekrun et al.’s (2005) manual suggested, the items were rated on a five-point Likert-type scale ranging from Strongly Disagree (rated 1) to Strongly Agree (rated 5) (Davari et al., 2020). The reliability and validity of the AEQ were checked through Cronbach’s alpha and confirmatory factor analysis, respectively.

In this study, Cronbach’s Alpha was used in order to check the reliability of the questionnaire, which yielded an acceptable index of .75 (DeVellis & Thorpe, 2021). In addition, a confirmatory factor analysis was used to determine the validity of the questionnaire. In this case, the data was subjected to the principal components factor analysis (PCFA). The results of KMO measure of sampling adequacy and Bartlett's Test of Sphericity indicated that this test enjoyed an acceptable validity rate. PCA results confirmed eight components with Eigen values exceeding 1, explaining 34.02, 7.91, 5.87, 4.07, 3.59, 2.93, 2.70, and 2.50 percent of the variance, respectively.

Grade Point Average (GPA) for Language Achievement

As the second source of data gathering, the language learners’ GPAs were asked for from the ILI adult department office management. The language learners’ GPAs are actually their final scores including their class activity and final exam scores being added together to provide their scores at the end of the term. Thus, here, by GPAs, the researchers refer to the average mark of the language learners, the average marks that are obtained from counting the class performance marks and the learners’ final exam marks.

Procedure

In order to estimate the possible contribution(s) of achievement emotions to male and female EFL learners’ language achievement, the researchers administered the AEQ among the EFL learners at ILI. The researchers met with the teachers of the male and female language learners so that the teachers could themselves administer the questionnaire to their students. The students were guaranteed of the anonymity of their responses so that they could answer the questionnaires without any anxiety. Having administered the questionnaire to both male and female language learners, at the end of the term, the researchers asked the ILI official department for the participants’ final term marks. Having gone through the whole procedure, the researchers used SPSS 22 software to estimate the contribution of achievement emotions to male and female EFL learners’ language achievement.

Data Analysis

Software SPSS 22 was used to statistically analyze the collected data. The researchers carried out multiple linear regressions in order to answer the first and second research questions, and independent-samples t-test to find the answer to the third research question. In this case, the related assumptions were checked also. The alpha level for the significance testing was set at .05 for the all analyses.

RESULTS

First Research Question

To address the first research question exploring which achievement emotion(s) is/are the best and significant predictor(s) of male and female EFL learners’ language achievement, two multiple linear regressions were separately conducted for male and female learners’ data. To this end, first, the assumptions for males were checked. The normality, homoscedasticity, and absence of multicollinearity assumptions were met.

Checking VIF values for all predictors (see Table 3), which are below 10, reflects the meeting of absence of multicollinearityassumption. As the preliminary checks ensured no violation of assumptions, a Multiple regression was computed to see which achievement emotion(s) is/are the significant and stronger predictor(s) of male EFL learners’ language achievement. The obtained results are presented in Tables 1, 2, and 3. 

Table 1: Model Summary for Male EFL Learners’ Aspects of Achievement Emotion in Predicting Their Language Achievement

1. Predictors: (Constant), Boredom, Shame, Pride, Anger, Hopelessness, Hope, Enjoyment, Anxiety
2. Dependent Variable: Male Language Achievement

Table 1 displays that the total variance clarified by the model as a whole was .73 (adjusted R square). In other words, 73% of the variance in male learners’ language achievement could be explained by the independent variables that is to say, their aspects of achievement emotions which included hope, pride, enjoyment, anxiety, shame, boredom, anger, and hopelessness. For determining if this result is considered significant statistically, and the regression model significantly predicts language achievement, the results of ANOVA test of multiple regression are presented in Table 2.

Table 2: The Results of ANOVA for Male EFL Learners' Aspects of Achievement Emotion in Predicting Their Language Achievement

1. Predictors: (Constant), Boredom, Shame, Pride, Anger, Hopelessness, Hope, Enjoyment, Anxiety
2. Dependent Variable: Male Language Achievement

Based on Table 2, the model reached a statistical significance, F(8, 139) = 51.17, p = .00 < .05. In this regard, in order to find out of eight aspects which aspect of achievement emotions is the significant predictor of male learners’ language achievement; we look at the coefficients table (Table 3).

Table 3: Coefficients

As indicated in Table 3, male EFL learners’ enjoyment, hope, and anxiety were significant predictors (p=.00) of their language achievement. However, anxiety was the strongest predictor of their language achievement (Beta = -.63, t = -3.50). This indicates that negative emotion such as anxiety has more contribution to the variance in their language achievement compared to the positive emotions of enjoyment and hope.

To explore which aspects of achievement emotion is the best and significant predictor of female EFL learners’ language achievement, another multiple regression was run. The normality, homoscedasticity, and absence of multicollinearity assumptions were met.

As Table 6 shows the value of VIF for most of the predictors are below 10, indicating that the absence of multicollinearity assumption is met. Preliminary checks ensured no violation of assumptions. Therefore, Multiple regression was run to find which achievement emotion(s) is/are the significant and stronger predictor(s) of female EFL learners' language achievement. The results are indicated in Tables 4, 5, and 6.

Table 4: Model Summary for Female EFL Learners' Aspects of Achievement Emotion in Predicting Their Language Achievement

1. Predictors: (Constant), Boredom, Shame, Pride, Anger, Hopelessness, Hope, Enjoyment, Anxiety
2. Dependent Variable: Female Language Achievement

As shown in Table 4, the total variance clarified by the model as a whole was .77 (adjusted R square). In other words, the explanation of 77% of the variance in female learners’ language achievement could be attributed to the independent variables that is to say their aspects of achievement emotions which included hope, enjoyment, pride, anxiety, shame, anger, boredom, and hopelessness. Next, the results of ANOVA test for examining the significance of the regression model in predicting female EFL learners’ language achievement by their scores on aspects of achievement emotions are shown in Table 5.

Table 5: The Results of ANOVA for Female EFL Learners' Aspects of Achievement Emotion in Predicting Their Language Achievement

1. Predictors: (Constant), Boredom, Shame, Pride, Anger, Hopelessness, Hope, Enjoyment, Anxiety
2. Dependent Variable: Female Language Achievement

As shown in Table 5, the model reached a statistical significance F(8, 122) = 58.30, p = .00 < .05. Based on these results, to find which aspect of female learners’ achievement emotions is the significant predictor of their language achievement, the results of Coefficients table is presented in Table 6.

Table 6: Coefficients

As indicated in the Table 6, female EFL learners’ enjoyment and anxiety were significant predictors (p = .00) of their language achievement. However, anxiety was a stronger predictor of their language achievement (Beta = -.82, t = -4.93). This reveals that negative emotion such as anxiety (compared to the positive emotion like enjoyment) contributes more to the variance in the female learners’ language achievement.

Second Research Question

To answer the second research question investigating which aspect(s) of achievement emotions is/are the best and significant predictor(s) of all participants’ language achievement, multiple regression was run. To do this, the required assumptions including normality, homoscedasticity, and absence of multicollinearity were first checked and all were met.

Based on Table 9, the value of VIF for all the predictors are below 10, indicating that the absence of multicollinearity assumption is met. Preliminary checks ensured no violation of the assumptions, which legitimated the running of multiple regression to see which achievement emotion is/are the significant and stronger predictor(s) of EFL learners' language achievement. The obtained results are demonstrated in Tables 7, 8 and 9. 

Table 7: Model Summary for EFL Learners' Aspects of Achievement Emotions in Predicting Their Language Achievement

1. Predictors: (Constant), Boredom, Shame, Pride, Anger, Hopelessness, Hope, Enjoyment, Anxiety
2. Dependent Variable: Language Achievement

As shown in Table 7, the total variance that was explained by the model as a whole was .72. In other words, 72% of the variance in all EFL learners’ language achievement, in the study, can be explainedthrough the independent variables (i.e., aspects of achievement emotions including hope, enjoyment, pride, anxiety, shame, anger, boredom, and hopelessness). Then, the results of ANOVA test in order to examine the significance of the regression model in having predictions on EFL learners' language achievement by their scores on aspects of achievement emotions are indicated in Table 8.

Table 8: The Results of ANOVA for EFL Learners’ Aspects of Achievement Emotion in Predicting Their Language Achievement

1. Predictors: (Constant), Boredom, Shame, Pride, Anger, Hopelessness, Hope, Enjoyment, Anxiety
2. Dependent Variable: Language Achievement

As it was shown in Table 8, the model reached statistical significance F(8, 270) = 94.56, p = .00 < .05. In this respect, to estimate which aspect of achievement emotions is the significant and stronger predictor of all participants’ language achievement, the results of Coefficient table are indicated in Table 9.

Table 9: Coefficients

As indicated in the Table 9, EFL learners’ enjoyment, hope, and anxiety were significant predictors of their language achievement. Nevertheless, anxiety was the strongest predictor of all participants’ language achievement (Beta = -.69, t = -5.44) in this study.

Third Research Question

To answer the third research question exploring the significance of the existing difference in the achievement emotions of male and female learners, there was the conduct of an Independent-Samples t-test. Table 10 indicates the descriptive statistics for the male and female learners’ achievement emotions.

Table 10: Descriptive Statistics of Male and Female EFL Learners’ Scores on Achievement Emotion

As it was presented in Table 10, the mean score for female learners’ achievement emotion was (M = 125.88, SD = 6.43) which was more than the mean score for male learners (M = 121.24, SD = 8.26). This reflects a difference between their means but in order to know if this difference can be considered as significant or not, the results of independent-sample t-test are displayed in Table 11.

Table 11: T-test Comparing Male and Female EFL Learners’ Score on Achievement Emotion

Based on Table 11, the assumption related to the equality of variances was not met (F = 7.39, p = .00), therefore, the second row was considered. As the results show, there is a statistically significant mean difference between male and female learners’ achievement emotion scores, t (272.68) = -4.64, p = .00, confirming the female learners’ higher level of achievement emotions.

DISCUSSION

The process of FL learning is accompanied by a wide spectrum of emotions that can significantly influence the educational and academic outcomes of the learners. Achievement emotions, which are emotions directly tied to success or failure in academic contexts, play an essential role in the academic path of EFL learners. Language learning generates various positive and negative emotions, which are incredibly important for both second language (L2) learning and achievement  (Shao et al., 2020). Nevertheless, the previous research which was about both learners’ emotions and their SLA had its focus just on some of learners’ emotions specially anxiety (Teimouri et al., 2019), while it is believed that the impacts that learners’ positive emotions (e.g., happiness, joy, pride, gratitude, admiration, and hope) can have on L2 learning are totally untouched (Dewaele & MacIntyre, 2014). Thus, the present study endeavored to investigate the contributions of female and male EFL learners’ achievement emotions (i.e., hope, enjoyment, anxiety, anger, shame, boredom, pride, and hopelessness) to their language achievement. In this case, the EFL learners’ eight achievement emotions were considered predictors of their language achievement.

The findings of the first research question showed that among male EFL learners, the components of enjoyment, hope, and anxiety were significant predictors of their language achievement. However, anxiety was the strongest predictor of male EFL learners’ language achievement. Considering female EFL learners, the aspects of enjoyment and anxiety were seen as significant predictors of their language achievement with the anxiety as a stronger one. Similarly, based on the findings of the second research question, the aspects of enjoyment, hope, and anxiety significantly predicted all learners’ language achievement and their anxiety is the strongest aspect in this regard.

The results showed that both male and female learners considered enjoyment and anxiety influential factors in their language performance, with anxiety being the strongest aspect for both male and female learners. Nevertheless, the aspect of hope was regarded to predict the performance of only male learners. The findings are in contrary with the study of Reilly and Sanchez-Rosas (2021), which showed that learners have the experience of positive feelings (e.g., hope) more regularly than the negative ones (e.g., shame), suggesting that test anxiety does not dominate the learners’ experience during language testing.

Additionally, the findings supported the studies of Dewaele and Alfawzan (2018) and Li (2021) that showed the impact of the positive stimulating emotions (e.g., hope and enjoyment) on language performance and learning. Moreover, similar to this study, the meta-analysis conducted by Zhang (2019) displayed that the feeling of anxiety is generally in negative correlation with language performance.

The results obtained from the third research question demonstrated that there was a significant difference between the male and the female EFL learners’ achievement emotion scores, indicating a higher mean score of female learners on achievement emotions. The results are in agreement with the study of Chahkandi and EslamiRasekh (2017), which indicated significant differences between the male and female learners related to diverse facets of emotional experience.

The existing literature showed that research mostly puts emphasis on positive emotions (Sanchez Rosas, 2019). In the study that was conducted by Goetz et al. (2006), learners’ positive emotions (e.g., pride and joy) were in a positive relationship with their general self-concept, self-esteem, and valuing the learning process along with success and achievement in the Latin instructional context. Based on the findings, it is critical to recognize the fact that everyone, regardless of gender and experiences, and expresses emotions differently. Differences within each gender group are possibly more noteworthy than any potential group-level variations. That is to say, social, biological, cultural, and individual factors all contribute to achievement emotions and language learning outcomes. Gender is just one component that can be examined in terms of affecting language achievement and controlling emotions.

Research indicates that male and female learners frequently exhibit different emotional responses to language learning contexts. Females characteristically report higher levels of language anxiety than males, which can be tied to societal expectations and the pressure to achieve perfection in language performance. This point is also confirmed by Gerencheal (2016) and Piniel and Zolyomi (2022). On the contrary, males might experience higher levels of enjoyment in their language achievements, which can foster greater assurance and a preparedness to take risks in learning. In this regard, Huang and Jiang (2022) found that male students reported higher intrinsic motivation and enjoyment in English learning compared to females.

Thus, it can be asserted that the differential emotional experiences of male and female EFL learners can manifest itself in different academic outcomes. Although the performance can be improved by positive achievement emotions, negative emotions might bring about reduced achievement. For females, handling anxiety might be fundamental for language success, whereas for males, sustaining engagement and enjoyment may possibly be more instrumental.

According to CVT, learners’ cognitive judgments of the achievement outcome they receive are manifestations of the emotions they experience in achievement-related situations. That is to say, every learning context is filled with different types of emotions transmitted to and experienced by the learners regarding their teacher, course, and classmates among which succeeding or failing can be more dominant elements in triggering emotions. However, as claimed by Pekrun (2000), the standard of achievement is a socioculturally-based construct; therefore, the way learners think about their learning accomplishments and performance is conceptualized to prompt dissimilar emotions.

Emotions related to language achievement are supposed to be contingent on the perceived controllability of the learners over the learning task and on its value. That is to say, if the learners can control the learning activity and perceive it as something valuable, the positive emotions such as enjoyment can be prompted and the degree of anxiety will be reduced. This point is clearly manifested in the findings of the study revealing that enjoyment is a significant predicator of language achievement among male and female leaners. Enjoying the process of language learning can be influential in gaining success and favorable learning outcome, which can also be linked to the positive emotions that learners experience.

Positive emotions create the expectancy of positive outcomes, that is, the language achievement. It implies that teachers can improve EFL learners’ achievement by providing emotional support, accompanied by creating positive contexts in language classes. Here, we need to consider how teachers' emotional status and understanding of learner emotions can influence student learning, which can be clarified based on the concept of teacher’s transpathy. When teachers exhibit transpathy (i.e., understanding and authenticating learners’ emotions) irrespective of gender, it could create a safe, stress-free, and supportive learning environment, possibly decreasing anxiety and fostering hope and positive emotions in all learners. Transpathy enables teachers to move beyond the potential gender stereotypes and focus on realizing the distinctive emotional experiences and encounters confronted by each individual learner, leading to more effective support better academic performance.

Transpathy encourages a deep and lasting commitment to others’ success, creating a unified and transformative experience for those providing support, reflecting a sense of relational becoming (Barratt Hacking & Taylor, 2020). In this regard, Miri (2023) stated that transpathy is an approach that outspreads further than simple emotional association, integrating all features of relational affect into an inclusive and impactful outline. Teachers who are transpathic are able to become entirely immersed in understanding and meeting their distinctive needs. This extreme engagement might bring about over-involvement, reflecting an enthusiastic commitment to the students’ development, accomplishment, and well-being. Transpathic teachers might become good supporters for their learners.

Generally, based on the findings, it can be asserted that, in male-dominated countries, males are invigorated and expected to be analysts while females are strapped to be cautious, and they are expected to take emotional roles at home and in schools. The outlook and atmosphere drive females to lose the opportunities for arguing and reflecting on their perspectives. This point is confirmed by Aguillon et al. (2020) revealing that men participated more than expected based on the class composition in most participation categories. In particular, men were strongly overrepresented in voluntary responses after small-group discussions across both semesters. Women in the course reported lower scientific self-efficacy and greater salience of gender identity.

However, as the consequences of the study exhibited, regarding the language performance, male and female learners showed similar academic achievements, which is a symbol of fair and equal educational opportunities. In addition, females were inclined to act more emotionally in comparison to male learners. Providing learners with knowledge of their emotions and applying them during learning and teaching process facilitated learning through the opportunities for interaction and encouraged learners to learn actively and monitor their learning conditions, which also led to convenient and stress-free conditions during assessments. These features were ultimately operative in lowering learners’ anxiety level. In sum, it can be determined that achievement emotions demonstrated noteworthy influence on improving EFL learners’ language achievement.  

CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS

The present study was conducted bearing the purpose of examining the contributions of EFL learners’ eight achievement emotions (hope, enjoyment, anxiety, pride, anger, boredom, shame, and hopelessness) to their language achievement. Based on the results obtained from statistical procedures, male EFL learners’ enjoyment, hope, and anxiety were proved to be significant predictors of their language achievement. Conversely, female EFL learners’ enjoyment and anxiety were significant predictors of their language achievement; however, anxiety was a stronger predictor of both male and female learners’ language achievement. Moreover, there was a significant difference between the achievement emotion scores of female and male EFL learners, with a higher mean score for female learners.

Accordingly, a conclusion can be driven here that the emotions EFL learners experience in an EFL context can be of high importance for them, and by experiencing positive emotions, their language achievement can become considerably high. It can be argued that as a key element in language learning, controlling emotions helps learners believe in their own abilities, and this belief triggers their efforts to move forward and act successfully in their learning. Hence, language classes can be more effective for improving this belief, which can be related to trusting the confidence in having the ability to control one’s own emotions, behaviors, and even social environments that are provided in language classes.

Grounded on the results that were obtained from this study, particular useful pedagogical implications can be yield. The outcomes of this study proved that affective factors and achievement emotions are crucially important in EFL contexts, and they play important roles in language development. The study proved the efficiency of positive and negative emotions, and teachers are responsible for assisting learners in knowing about their personal characteristics with the intention of using them in enlightening their learning. The results obtained from the current research can bear pedagogical implications for new methods of teaching English via providing emotional awareness, and course designers can apply the consequences of this study for materials preparation based on learners and teachers’ emotions.

Practically, teacher-training programs can include modules on emotional intelligence to equip educators with skills to recognize and manage their own emotions and respond efficiently to learners’ emotional states. Moreover, fostering open communication, considering different emotions, and implementing stress-reduction practices can promote a safe and comfortable learning environment where learners feel respected and heartened to express themselves. Integrating materials that evoke and explore various emotions through texts, songs, films, and various types of podcasts can help students understand and navigate their own feelings while developing language skills. This can also be administered by including activities and tasks that encourage students to reflect on and express their emotions in English, such as journaling, pair and group discussions, or drama exercises. Additionally, considering materials development and preparation, it is valuable to consider the potential emotional impact of course materials, evading content that could cause anxiety or negative feelings in EFL learners.

 Moreover, several suggestions for further research are offered as follows. Further studies can explore the effect of achievement emotions on improving learners’ linguistic and communicative proficiency, specifically in terms of receptive and productive skills. In addition, several influential factors such as self-esteem, perfectionism, successful intelligence, etc. can be considered in further investigations in relation to achievement emotions and its components.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

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