Modeling the associations between L2 grit, foreign language enjoyment, and student engagement among Chinese EFL English-major learners: A control-value theory perspective

Learning a new language is an intricate and long-term endeavor, fraught with numerous possible obstacles, which needs learners' engagement. Concurrent with the positive psychology of language learners, it is crucial to delve into the role of learners' positive personality features and emotions (e.g., grit, positive emotions) in their engagement. However, there is a scarcity of research on the mediating role of foreign language enjoyment (FLE) in the relationship between English-major students' L2 grit and their engagement in second language (L2) learning processes. By utilizing the control-value theory and structural equation modeling approach, this study seeks to explore the impact of L2 grit components (i.e., the consistency of interest and perseverance of effort) and FLE on the engagement of Chinese undergraduates ( N = 217) majoring in English in an EFL context. The results indicated that 1) perseverance of effort and the FLE had a significantly positive and direct influence on student engagement; 2) perseverance of effort had a notably positive and direct effect on FLE, while consistency of interest did not affect learners' FLE; 3) consistency of interest had a slightly positive and direct effect on student engagement; and 4) perseverance of effort had a positive and indirect influence on student engagement, partially mediated by FLE, whereas FLE did not mediate the link between consistency of interest and student engagement. These results offer educational insights for improving students’ engagement in the language learning process.