Chapter1. Introduction
1. 1. Overview of the Study
Evidently, willingness to communicate (WTC) has established itself as a determining factor in bringing about success or failure in learning a second language (Dӧrnyei,2005; Peng & Woodrow, 2010). It was first McCroskey and Richmond (1987) who developed the WTC concept in first language (L1) communication (as cited in Baharvand, Rezaee, & Valadi 2015). Dörnyei (2003) claimed that L2 competence by itself is not enough and learners need both the ability and the willingness to communicate (as cited in Bahshosh, Marzban, Nejad, & Rastegar, 2013) if successful communication is the aim of langue instruction (Richmond, 1987 as cited in Baharvand, et.al, 2015). According to Molberg …show more content…
It is thus, a concept which may influence learners’ WTC which can lead to a decrease in their oral proficiency level.
Up to now, WTC has been affected by various variables which are known as individual differences by scholars and researchers (e.g., Dörnyei, 2005; Peng & Woodrow, 2010; Molberg, 2010; Baharvand, et.al, 2015) as being influential factors in communication among students in the language classrooms including fears of speaking, lack of self-esteem, language anxiety, gender, age, extroversion, introversion, empathy, risk taking, and so on.
Given the importance of WTC and ambiguity tolerance as well as oral proficiency in the context of EFL, and the significance of autonomy in this regard, the present study aims at investigating the relationship between learners' WTC and their oral proficiency in the light of ambiguity tolerance and autonomy.
1.2. Statement of the Problem
Considering that individuals̕ WTC is affected by a number of factors such as fears of speaking, lack of self-esteem, language anxiety, gender, age, extroversion, introversion, empathy, risk taking, and so on, McCroskey (1992) states that issues remain as to what possible impacts/ relation WTC has on/ with L2 …show more content…
MacIntyre, Baker, Clement, and Donovan (2002) examined the impacts of age and gender on WTC and other variables including apprehension, perceived competence, and L2 motivation among junior high school L2 French immersion students in a Canadian context. As many as 268 students, including 96 males' and188 females from grades 7 to 9 with an age range from 11 to 16, participated in the study. The results from the self-report data indicated obvious changes in each variable across the grade levels, and variances based on gender were noticeable in WTC and communication apprehension. The students’ L2 WTC, perceived competence, and the frequency of communication in French increased from grades 7to 8 and remained stable between grades 8 and 9; however, L2 motivation between grades 7 and 8 decreased and the students’ communication apprehension level remained stable across the three grades.
Secondly, Burgoon (1976) defined that the unwillingness to communicate constructs as a global communication representing the predisposition of “a chronic tendency to avoid and/or devalue oral communication” (p. 60). Burgoon (1976) considered two factors including approach-avoidance and reward, respectively, to determine how likely a person is to participate in communication and whether an individual finds communication rewarding or
1. 1. Overview of the Study
Evidently, willingness to communicate (WTC) has established itself as a determining factor in bringing about success or failure in learning a second language (Dӧrnyei,2005; Peng & Woodrow, 2010). It was first McCroskey and Richmond (1987) who developed the WTC concept in first language (L1) communication (as cited in Baharvand, Rezaee, & Valadi 2015). Dörnyei (2003) claimed that L2 competence by itself is not enough and learners need both the ability and the willingness to communicate (as cited in Bahshosh, Marzban, Nejad, & Rastegar, 2013) if successful communication is the aim of langue instruction (Richmond, 1987 as cited in Baharvand, et.al, 2015). According to Molberg …show more content…
It is thus, a concept which may influence learners’ WTC which can lead to a decrease in their oral proficiency level.
Up to now, WTC has been affected by various variables which are known as individual differences by scholars and researchers (e.g., Dörnyei, 2005; Peng & Woodrow, 2010; Molberg, 2010; Baharvand, et.al, 2015) as being influential factors in communication among students in the language classrooms including fears of speaking, lack of self-esteem, language anxiety, gender, age, extroversion, introversion, empathy, risk taking, and so on.
Given the importance of WTC and ambiguity tolerance as well as oral proficiency in the context of EFL, and the significance of autonomy in this regard, the present study aims at investigating the relationship between learners' WTC and their oral proficiency in the light of ambiguity tolerance and autonomy.
1.2. Statement of the Problem
Considering that individuals̕ WTC is affected by a number of factors such as fears of speaking, lack of self-esteem, language anxiety, gender, age, extroversion, introversion, empathy, risk taking, and so on, McCroskey (1992) states that issues remain as to what possible impacts/ relation WTC has on/ with L2 …show more content…
MacIntyre, Baker, Clement, and Donovan (2002) examined the impacts of age and gender on WTC and other variables including apprehension, perceived competence, and L2 motivation among junior high school L2 French immersion students in a Canadian context. As many as 268 students, including 96 males' and188 females from grades 7 to 9 with an age range from 11 to 16, participated in the study. The results from the self-report data indicated obvious changes in each variable across the grade levels, and variances based on gender were noticeable in WTC and communication apprehension. The students’ L2 WTC, perceived competence, and the frequency of communication in French increased from grades 7to 8 and remained stable between grades 8 and 9; however, L2 motivation between grades 7 and 8 decreased and the students’ communication apprehension level remained stable across the three grades.
Secondly, Burgoon (1976) defined that the unwillingness to communicate constructs as a global communication representing the predisposition of “a chronic tendency to avoid and/or devalue oral communication” (p. 60). Burgoon (1976) considered two factors including approach-avoidance and reward, respectively, to determine how likely a person is to participate in communication and whether an individual finds communication rewarding or