L2 task-based interaction: exploring how learners’ interaction mindsets and task perceptions shape learner engagement, task completion, and lexical learning

Framed within Social Interdependence Theory, this study investigated how learner factors (interaction mindsets and task perceptions) relate to learner engagement, task completion, and lexical learning. A-hundred-and-five L2 learners of English completed an interaction-mindsets questionnaire and a lexical pre-test, performed two interactive tasks (i.e., collaborative spatial planning task vs asymmetric visual comparison task), completed an engagement questionnaire, and participated in a post-test and a debriefing. Learner interactions were coded for engagement (semantically engaged talk, responsiveness, LREs), while survey and interview data were analyzed using inferential statistics and thematic analysis. Our results showed that interaction mindsets predicted various dimensions of engagement (i.e., cognitive, social and emotional) and lexical learning. Most learners viewed tasks positively despite their differing foci. Follow-up tests revealed the impact of task type on engagement, which in turn predicted task completion. The results evidence links between learner factors, engagement, and learning outcomes, which highlights the need to foster positive interaction mindsets and task perceptions to enhance engagement, and learning.