The Role of Self-efficacy in Foreign Language Acquisition

Abstract

The aim of this article is to investigate the impact of self-efficacy on Foreign Language Acquisition in secondary school students following a relatively recent shift of focus in the field, as the learner’s needs, efforts and capacities have been placed at the centre of the learning process. Hence the need to address the existing research gap by proving that self-efficacy may be viewed as a significant indicator of foreign language proficiency. Apart from presenting the theoretical background, the article also reveals the empirical findings of the research carried out in a higher secondary school on 78 participants (N = 78). The study suggests that highly efficacious students receive the highest English mean grade, that they are competent foreign language users and are confident about their skills, and approach the FL learning progress more consistently, not being discouraged by taking risks in the foreign language acquisition context and confronting situations which cannot be foreseen. In stark contrast are learners scoring low levels of self-efficacy who are more likely to engage in procrastination, have a lower mean of English grades and are not eager to participate actively in the foreign language acquisition classroom. The article concludes with a number of implications and recommendations which may be implemented in the future teaching methodology, particularly indicating other research directions.