From Learning Beliefs to Engagement: The Mediating Role of Motivation among Malaysian CFL Learners
Abstract
This study investigates the relationships among learning beliefs, learning motivation, and learning engagement in the context of Chinese as a Foreign Language (CFL) among Malaysian university students, with a particular focus on the mediating role of motivation. Drawing on a learner psychology perspective, the study proposes and tests a mediation model linking these three key constructs. A quantitative research design was adopted, and data were collected from 208 undergraduate students enrolled in CFL courses using a structured questionnaire. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, regression analysis, and mediation analysis with bootstrapping procedures. The results reveal that learning beliefs significantly and positively predict both learning motivation and learning engagement. Learning motivation emerges as the strongest predictor of engagement, indicating its central role in shaping learners’ active participation. Furthermore, mediation analysis demonstrates that learning motivation partially mediates the relationship between learning beliefs and learning engagement, suggesting that beliefs influence engagement both directly and indirectly through motivational processes. These findings contribute to the field of second language acquisition by providing empirical support for an integrated model of learner psychology and by extending mediation-based research to the CFL context. The study also offers pedagogical implications for enhancing student motivation and engagement through the development of positive learning beliefs.
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References
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