Predictors of L2 achievement: Testing a model based on EFL learners' emotional, social, and cultural capitals

Somaye Piri
Texas A&M University, and Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran
Reza Pishghadam
Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran
L. Quentin Dixon and Zohreh Eslami Rasekh
Texas A&M University, Qatar and USA

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the influence of Iranian EFL learners' previously acquired capitals on their foreign language achievement. For this purpose, the Social and Cultural Capital Questionnaire (SCCQ) and Emotional Capital Questionnaire (ECQ) were administered to 403 participants. Application of structural equation modeling showed that social, cultural, and emotional capitals significantly predict the achievement of the language learners within an Iranian context. Regarding the predictive power of capitals, all the three forms of capital had a medium effect in predicting L2 achievement; however, emotional capital was a stronger predictor of L2 achievement than social capital, followed by cultural capital. Likewise, the comparable predictive powers of subcomponents of social, cultural, and emotional capital were examined. Conclusions are drawn concerning the pedagogical implications of the results and areas for further research.
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Authors: Dr Somaye Piri is a research scholar in Texas A&M University. She holds a PhD in applied linguistics from Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran. She is engaged with teaching in the area of TESOL, skilled in academic research and experienced in lecturing. She has several publications in the area of applied linguistics. Email: piri.somaye@yahoo.com Dr Reza Pishghadam is a professor of language education and a professor by courtesy of educational psychology in Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran. He has published numerous articles and books in different domains of psychology and English language education. Email: pishghadam@um.ac.ir Web: http://pishghadam.profcms.um.ac.ir/ Dr Zohreh Eslami is a professor at Texas A&M University and serves as the chair of Liberal Arts Program at Texas A&M University at Qatar. She has more than 75 publications in journals such as International Review of Pragmatics, System, Journal of Pragmatics and Language Awareness. Her research interests include intercultural pragmatics and communication. Email: zeslami@tamu.edu Web: http://directory.cehd.tamu.edu/view.epl?nid=zrasekh Dr L. Quentin Dixon is an associate professor in the Department of Teaching, Learning and Culture, Texas A&M University, USA. Her research focuses on the language and literacy development of young bilingual children, and in using rigorous quantitative research methods to study educational questions. She has published in leading journals such as Review of Educational Research, Journal of Research in Reading and Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. Email: qdixon@tamu.edu Web: http://directory.cehd.tamu.edu/view.epl?nid=qdixon Please cite as: Piri, S., Pishghadam, R., Dixon. L. Q. and Razekh, Z. E. &(2018). Predictors of L2 achievement: Testing a model based on EFL learners' emotional, social, and cultural capitals. Issues in Educational Research, 28(3), 737-755. http://www.iier.org.au/iier28/piri.pdf