Language-specific grit: exploring psychometric properties, predictive validity, and differences across contexts

• Published in: Innovation in language learning and teaching Vol. 15; no. 4; pp. 334 - 351
• Main Authors: Sudina, Ekaterina, Brown, Jason, Datzman, Brien, Oki, Yukiko, Song, Katherine, Cavanaugh, Robert, Thiruchelvam, Bala, Plonsky, Luke
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Routledge 08.08.2021; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Academic Persistence; Anxiety; Correlation; EFL; English (Second Language); English as a second language instruction; English as a second language learning; English proficiency; ESL; Factor Analysis; Factor Structure; Foreign Countries; Individual Differences; Japanese; L2 grit; Language; Language Proficiency; learning context; Learning environment; Learning Motivation; Measures (Individuals); Persistence; Personality; Personality Traits; Predictive Validity; Psychology; Psychometrics; Resilience (Psychology); Second Language Instruction; Second Language Learning; Student Attitudes; Undergraduate Students; Validity; Japan
• ISSN: 1750-1229; 1750-1237
• DOI: 10.1080/17501229.2020.1802468

'Grit' has been identified as an important predictor of success in a number of academic and non-academic domains (Duckworth, A. L., C. Peterson, M. D. Matthews, and D. R. Kelly. 2007. "Grit: Perseverance and Passion for Long-Term Goals." Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 92: 1087-1101. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.92.6.1087). The present study responds to calls to examine language-specific (L2) grit. We investigated the factor structure of the L2-Grit Scale (Teimouri, Y., L. Plonsky, and F. Tabandeh. in press. "L2 Grit: Passion and Perseverance for Second-Language Learning." Language Teaching Research, 1-26. doi:10.1177/1362168820921895) and examined the predictive validity of grit and three other individual differences in relation to English proficiency among second and foreign language learners from different countries. Factor analysis revealed a two-dimensional structure of the L2-Grit Scale. However, the correlation between the factors was stronger in the EFL than in the ESL sample. Moreover, the L2 grit subscales had differential predictive validity: Perseverance of Effort was a significant positive predictor of proficiency in the EFL context, while Consistency of Interest was a significant negative predictor in the ESL context. This study represents one of the first inquiries into L2 grit and how it relates to the learning context in particular.