The Mediating Effect of English Learning Motivation among Student Autonomy, Student Engagement and English Language Performance of Chinese Vocational College EFL Students in Shandong Province

This study aimed to investigate the interrelationships among English learning motivation, student autonomy, student engagement and English language performance among vocational college EFL students in Shandong Province in China. Furthermore, it sought to examine whether English learning motivation serves as a mediating factor in the relationships among student autonomy, student engagement and English language performance. This study adopts a quantitative research methodology. To ensure the validity and reliability of the research instruments prior to the main data collection, a pilot study was conducted in the previous semester. Three validated instruments were employed in the pilot phase: the Learner Autonomy Scale (LAS), the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale –Student Version (UWES-S), and the English Learning Motivation Scale (ELMS). The field study data were collected from March to May 2024, involving the EFL students from the 15 “Double High Pla” higher vocational colleges in Shandong Province, China. A total of 562 valid questionnaires were obtained for analysis. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS. The analyses included descriptive statistics for participants’ demographic characteristics, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to validate the measurement model, correlation analysis to examine the relationships among variables, and structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the hypothesized mediation model. Through SEM and direct-indirect analysis, the result revealed that English learning motivation partially mediates the relationship between student autonomy and English language performance; as well as between student engagement and English language performance. The findings of this study offer important theoretical and practical implications for English language teaching and learning in vocational colleges, particularly within China. The confirmation of English learning motivation as a partial mediator highlights its crucial role in improving vocational EFL students’ English language performance. This indicates that enhancing student autonomy and engagement is more effective when paired with strategies that boost motivation. Educators and curriculum designers should therefore place greater emphasis on cultivating both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation through learner-centered pedagogical approaches, goal-setting activities, and relevance-enhancing instruction that connects English learning to students’ future careers and real-life applications.