The mediating role of goal orientation in the relationship between intercultural sensitivity and speaking performance in EFL learners
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Abstract
Introduction: Although research on intercultural awareness in language learning studies has generated substantial literature, particularly on individual differences such as motivation and willingness to communicate, no comparable attention has been equally directed at achievement-related constructs such as goal orientations in relation to intercultural sensitivity and learning outcomes. In this vein, this study aimed to explore this under-researched area by focusing on goal orientation as the primary source of learner variance. Not only did it seek to examine the correlation between goal orientation and one’s intercultural disposition, but it also sought to verify whether such an association might well have a significant bearing on one’s learning outcomes.
Methodology: The experimental process began by administering psychometric tests to 212 intermediate-level English learners, of whom 19 participants took part in two rounds of a speaking performance task. The selection of the latter, being the best scorers on the two goal profiles, was justified by the testing nature of the empirical course. The main participants were clustered into low-Mastery/high-Performance and high-Mastery/low-Performance groups, and their intercultural sensitivity level was determined based on a validated 15-item scale. The experimental procedure drew on interview tasks, led with native and non-native interlocutors, and considered repeated measures of fluency and complexity to account for how both goal and intercultural variables jointly shaped oral performance.
Results: The findings attested to the systematic relationship between one’s goal orientation and their level of intercultural sensitivity. Moreover, there was a significant effect of such an association on participants’ processing biases.
Conclusion: Building on these results, it is suggested to consider individual differences in any future research and curricular effort when it comes to intercultural awareness.
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