During and After Self-Regulated Writing: Influence of During-Writing Task Implementation and Self-Control on Post-Writing Task Evaluation and L2 Writing Performance

This study examined the impacts of during-writing task implementation (DWTI) and self-control on post-writing task evaluation (PWTE) and second/foreign language (L2) writing performance in an English argumentative writing task. It collected 335 questionnaires, 10 interviews, and 335 essays from second-year students at a Chinese university. Correlation analyses, structural equation modeling, mediational analyses, and thematic analysis were conducted on the data, which revealed four major findings. (a) DWTI significantly positively predicted during-writing self-control (DWSC); DWSC significantly positively predicted PWTE. (b) Neither DWTI nor DWSC significantly predicted L2 writing performance (L2WP). The predictive effects of DWTI and self-control dimensions were hard to determine due to poor model fit indices. (c) DWSC mediated DWTI’s relationship with PWTE (significantly) and L2WP (insignificantly). The mediating effects of DWSC dimensions were hard to determine due to poor model fit indices. (d) The interviewees actively employed diverse strategies to implement ideas into words and self-controlled their writing while composing at the during-writing stage, which contributed to the accomplishment of the task and PWTE. These findings indicated the complexity of the L2 writing process and the interaction of diverse strategies employed in the same and/or different phases of the process, providing evidence for the cyclic three-phase model of writing and insights for the teaching and learning of L2 writing.