Predicting factors impacting EFL students’ writing competence: Examining the moderating effects of personal characteristics

Phe Quang Chu, Trang Hoang Trang and Dao Thi Anh Vo
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Phe Quang Chu: University of Finance - Marketing, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Trang Hoang Trang: University of Finance - Marketing, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Dao Thi Anh Vo: University of Finance - Marketing, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF SCIENCE - SOCIAL SCIENCES, 2025, vol. 15, issue 2, 180-196

Abstract: This paper quantitatively predicts the factors that impact English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students’ Writing Competence (WC), examining the multiple-level effects of three independent constructs (Environmental Factors [EF], Personal Beliefs [BL], Behavioral Factors [BF]) and three moderating variables (gender, academic performance, and self-study time) on EFL students’ WC. The questionnaire was delivered to 85 EFL students at a university in Vietnam, and the findings show that the SRMR index of the estimated model is .46, meaning a good fit. Hypothesis testing validated the positive causality between the exogenous constructs and their corresponding endogenous ones. In the direct relations, EF affects BL the most (75.1%), BF impacts WC (69.3%), and finally, BL influences BF the least (38.4%). In the indirect relations, EF affects WC the most (55.1%), then EF influences BF (28.9%) and finally, BL impacts WC the least (26.6%). The analytical result also revealed the moderating effect of gender on the relation between BF and WC. Still, the moderation of academic performance and self-study time on the relation between BF and WC was rejected. Finally, the authors discuss some major administrative measures to target if stakeholders wish to improve EFL students’ WC.

Keywords: collaborative learning; collaborative writing; English as a foreign language; SCLT; writing competence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bjw:socien:v:15:y:2025:i:2:p:180-196

DOI: 10.46223/HCMCOUJS.soci.en.15.2.3644.2025

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