Resilience and Reflectivity as Predictors of L2 Reading Comprehension: A Case of Iranian EFL Learners

Abstract

Reflectivity and resilience have been introduced in SLA research as two substantially effective variables, influencing the teaching and learning of an L2 in some EFL/ESL contexts. Accordingly, this study was conducted to examine the relationship among reflectivity, resilience, and reading comprehension performance of Iranian EFL learners. The study sample included 70 intermediate EFL learners studying English at a Language Institute in Tehran. The administration of the Preliminary English Test (PET) allowed the researchers to homogenize the participants concerning their general L2 proficiency. During the data collection procedure, the participants answered the Eysenck Impulsiveness Questionnaire (EIQ), which categorized them into two subgroups of impulsive and reflective learners. Then, the learners were given Connor Davidson's (2003) Resilience Scale, and finally, the reading section of another PET Test was used to test the participants' reading comprehension performance. Results of data analysis using regression analyses showed that there was a statistically significant relationship between resilience and reading comprehension and between reflectivity and reading comprehension. Furthermore, the regression analyses revealed that both resilience and reflectivity could strongly predict the reading comprehension performance of the EFL learners; however, it was found that resilience was a better predictor of reading comprehension compared to reflectivity. The results of this study have some pedagogical implications that would help EFL teachers, learners, and syllable designers to better deal with teaching and learning English as a foreign language.