Understanding College Foreign Language Learners’ Creativity: scale development and validation

This study developed and validated the College Foreign Language Learners’ Creativity Scale (CFLLCS) to address the lack of a domain-specific measure for assessing the creativity of foreign language (FL) learners. Grounded in Williams’ (1980. Creativity Assessment Packet (CAP): Manual. DOK Publishers) framework and refined through interviews with FL instructors and learners, the scale was psychometrically evaluated with a diverse sample of 688 college students. Data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0 for item analysis and exploratory factor analysis, followed by confirmatory factor analysis in Mplus 8.3, with the scale’s reliability and validity subsequently assessed. The resulting 12-item scale comprises two factors (i.e. Learning Strategies and Language Use), which aligns with Cohen’s (2011. Strategies in Learning and Using a Second Language. 2nd ed. Routledge) model of language learning and demonstrates strong reliability and validity. Furthermore, regression analyses established its criterion validity, showing that both creative self-efficacy and FL proficiency positively predict FL learners’ creativity. The CFLLCS provides researchers and educators with a theoretically grounded and empirically sound tool for assessing and understanding creativity among FL learners.