Taiwanese undergraduates’ motivation, willingness to communicate, and use of English language on Facebook: A mediation model

Abstract

I examined the effects of intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and willingness to communicate on Taiwanese undergraduates’ use of the English language on Facebook. Structural equation modeling was adopted to test the hypotheses in the conceptual model with a sample of 320 Taiwanese undergraduates. The results showed that both intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation were significantly associated with students’ willingness to communicate and with their use of English on Facebook. Moreover, intrinsic motivation had a more powerful effect than did extrinsic motivation on willingness to communicate, and extrinsic motivation was negatively associated with use of English on Facebook. Willingness to communicate mediated the relationships between both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and use of English on Facebook. The findings suggest that fostering intrinsic motivation among students is crucial for enhancing willingness to communicate in English, which, in turn, has a positive impact on their English usage on Facebook.