Writing test anxiety is prevalent among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners and may negatively affect their writing performance. However, the dimensional structure of writing test anxiety remains under-investigated in EFL contexts. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the underlying factors of writing test anxiety among EFL learners. A quantitative research design was employed, and data were collected from 375 EFL learners using a writing test anxiety questionnaire. The questionnaire responses were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA). The data were suitable for factor analysis (KMO = 0.913; Bartlett’s test of sphericity, p < 0.001). Six underlying factors were identified: Writing-Induced Emotional Strain (WIES), Cognitive Strain in Writing (CSW), Writing Accuracy and Evaluation Stress (WAES), Performance Evaluation Anxiety (PEA), Time-Pressure Writing Anxiety (TPWA), and Sociocultural Feedback Response (SFR). Together, these factors explained 60.420% of the total variance. The findings contribute to the understanding of the multidimensional nature of writing test anxiety and suggest practical implications for language teachers and curriculum designers to develop instructional strategies and supportive learning environments that may help reduce anxiety and enhance EFL learners’ writing performance.
This study examines how WeChat and MOOCs differentially enhance Chinese EFL learners’ in‑class willingness to communicate (WTC), addressing persistent gaps in comparing language learning between social-media‑supported environments and learning management systems. Grounded in Affordance Theory, it proposes a dual‑track framework that distinguishes between affective‑social (WeChat) and cognitive‑structural (MOOCs) pathways. A 10‑week quasi‑experimental mixed‑methods design with 135 undergraduates compared three groups: a WeChat‑supported group, a MOOCs‑supported group, and a conventional instruction group. ANCOVA results (adjusting for pre-test WTC and English proficiency) showed that the WeChat group significantly boosted post‑test WTC (M= 153.98) compared with the control group (M= 143.76, p= .023), whereas the MOOCs group yielded moderate, non‑significant gains (M= 151.93). Qualitative analysis showed that WeChat’s low‑social‑presence features (voice messaging and asynchronous group interaction) reduced anxiety and built peer cohesion, benefiting learners across WTC levels. Conversely, MOOCs’ cognitive‑structural affordances supported content mastery but imposed excessive load on lower‑proficiency learners and lacked real‑time social interaction, thereby limiting WTC translation into classroom practice. The findings advocate a sequenced integration: MOOCs for pre‑class cognitive scaffolding and WeChat for post‑class affective‑social activation. This dual‑track model advances Affordance Theory in EFL contexts and offers concrete pedagogical guidance for optimising mobile‑assisted WTC development.
The present study explores the role of cognitive linguistics in English-Arabic translation, with particular attention to conceptual metaphor theory, frame semantics, and embodied cognition as key cognitive mechanisms underlying the processes of meaning construction and reconstruction. It critically challenges traditional translation paradigms based on formal or dynamic equivalence, positing that translation is not a process of direct linguistic substitution. Instead, it is a cognitively driven and culturally embedded act of conceptual negotiation. Within this conceptual framework, meaning is not a fixed or self-contained entity transferred between languages; rather, it is a dynamic construct continually shaped and reshaped by culturally situated cognitive frameworks and embodied experiential patterns. The study adopts a qualitative interpretive methodology, drawing on a purposive selection of linguistic data across a range of genres, including everyday expressions. The analysis reveals systematic divergences between English and Arabic in the conceptualization of abstract domains such as emotion, time, and social relations. English tends to foreground notions of linearity, autonomy, and instrumental rationality, whereas Arabic discourse more frequently emphasizes relational orientations, moral embeddedness, and experiential intensity. These divergences manifest in distinct metaphorical mappings and frame structuring, which often resist literal translation and necessitate adaptive processes of conceptual reconfiguration. The findings further demonstrate that both traditional equivalence-based paradigms and contemporary machine translation systems are limited in accounting for culturally and cognitively complex meaning. While technological tools may enhance lexical consistency and processing efficiency, they remain fundamentally insufficient for apprehending deeper conceptual and metaphorical dimensions of language. The study concludes that cognitively informed translation constitutes a more comprehensive and explanatory framework for understanding translation phenomena, as it systematically integrates the cognitive, linguistic, and cultural dimensions of meaning. Accordingly, it advocates for a paradigmatic shift toward cognitively grounded translation approaches that strengthen both theoretical understanding and practical effectiveness in English-Arabic translation contexts.
This article examines the figure of the snake woman in Raja Alem’s Fatma: A Novel of Arabia (2002) through the lenses of feminist psychoanalytic theory and mythic reinterpretation. Drawing on Kristeva’s theory of abjection, Creed’s conception of the “monstrous-feminine”, and Cixous’s notion of écriture féminine, it investigates how the novel reimagines the hybrid female body through transforming monstrosity from a marker of exclusion into a source of feminine agency and self-representation. While antiquity frequently frames serpentine female figures, most notably Medusa, through a patriarchal gaze that equates feminine fluidity with monstrosity, the analysis shows the ways in which Fatma destabilizes such traditions. The heroine’s transformation into a snake woman becomes an ambivalent and multivalent site through which the meanings of the female body oscillate between monstrosity and beauty, and between abjection and power. The study demonstrates that the heroine’s serpentine transformation simultaneously draws on feminist reclamation of Medusa and on Arab serpent traditions associated with knowledge, renewal, and feminine power. It offers an original theorization of how contemporary Saudi fiction participates in and extends the global feminist reinterpretation of female mythic monstrosity with new insights into the politics of serpentine embodiment in Arab women’s writing.
As a frequently overlooked dimension of the wilderness, the sea functions as a critical site through which fictional characters come to recognize human smallness. This is mediated by encounters with the volatile weather, nonhuman life, and a mode of perception that contrasts sharply with that of a civilized human community. The young adult (YA) novels authored by Gary Paulsen have often been categorized as man-against-nature narratives which emphasize human confrontation with and mastery over the natural environment. However, this paper argues that such readings overlook the ecocritical themes embedded in Paulsen’s works. It therefore attempts to analyze The Voyage of the Frog (1989) from a nonanthropocentric worldview in which the sea functions as an ecological agent that undermines the assumptions of human superiority and reveals humanity’s vulnerability within an interconnected environmental system. Drawing on Greg Garrard’s wilderness concept and Paul W. Taylor’s lens of nonanthropocentrism in environmental ethics, particularly his idea of respect for nature, the article presents a close reading from the framework of the principles such as nonmaleficence, the denial of human superiority, and ethical transformation in the selected YA text. The findings show that the narrative embodies a theme highlighting how the protagonist, David Alspeth, when cast into the nonhuman world such as the sea, gradually transforms toward nonanthropocentrism. He learns to recognize that he is not the center of value judgment, nor is he the superior creature compared to the animals. By foregrounding these ethical dynamics in the reading of the selected text, the study contributes to the growing body of scholarship that re-evaluates Gary Paulsen’s YA fiction through an important ecocritical and nonanthropocentric lens.
This article examines Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun and Dave Eggers's The Every, analyzing how both authors investigate the human experience amidst rapid technological progress. Set in dystopian futures where AI profoundly influences everyday life, these novels explore how artificial intelligence intersects with human emotions, relationships, and autonomy. Ishiguro focuses on Klara, an artificial friend that mirrors human feelings, while Eggers presents a society in which the Every's algorithmic systems control extensive information. Both authors use introspective narratives to reveal the unsettling effects of technology on human identity and connections. Through their literary techniques and character development, they highlight the blurred lines between human and machine, raising questions about consciousness and empathy. Applying a posthumanist framework provides insight into these themes, revealing how these works critique the consequences of technological advancements on human subjectivity, privacy, and ethical boundaries, offering a profound commentary on modern digital challenges.
This paper aims to examine the representation of place in the poetry of Louise Erdrich and Lucille Clifton through the theoretical frameworks of phenomenological geography and environmental psychology. It draws on key concepts from Edward Relph, Yi-Fu Tuan, Irwin Altman, Seth Low, and Harlod Proshansky to dissect how Erdrich and Clifton’s poetry explore themes of place, identity, history, and memory. Key terms in place theory such as placelessness, topophilia, place attachment, and place identity are applied to representative poems by Erdrich and Clifton. The study also employs close reading and comparative analysis to investigate how the poets construct land as an emotional, historical, and lived place within the framework of place theory. To examine how place is rooted in language, close reading is used to examine poetic devices such as imagery, diction and figurative language.In addition, the study investigates the consequences of slavery and colonization and their psychological effects from the perspective of place-based theories. It reveals that Erdrich and Clifton share the belief that attachment to land helps preserve cultural identity of Native and African Americans. Nevertheless, they differ slightly on how they depict land emotional attachment. Lucille Clifton’s representation of land is marked by longing and geographical separation, while Louise Erdrich’s depiction is characterized by grief and land dispossession.By comparatively analyzing the poetry of Native and African Americans, within a place-based framework, this study contributes to broader academic discussions in place studies, Native and African American criticism, ethnic studies, and Indigenous scholarship. It also demonstrates the interdisciplinary value integrating close reading and comparative analysis with phenomenological geography and environmental psychology approaches to the study of literature.
Although typography was traditionally regarded as a transparent medium for linguistic content, recent developments in multimodal stylistics and social semiotics have established it as an active semiotic resource that significantly shapes narrative representation and reader interpretation in postcolonial literary studies. Despite this theoretical advancement, postcolonial fiction has comparatively underexplored the interpretive role of typographic variation. Therefore, this study critically examines the role of typography as a multimodal and semiotic resource in The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, focusing on how its visual-textual features contribute to interpretation. While previous scholarship on the novel has primarily focused on postcolonial identity, caste, gender, and socio-political concerns, comparatively limited attention has been given paid to the interpretive significance of its visual-textual features. Addressing this gap, the study investigates how typographic variations—including unconventional capitalization, misspellings, fragmented word structures, merged expressions, and reverse textual patterns—contribute to narrative meaning and reader interpretation. The research adopts a qualitative textual methodology grounded in multimodal stylistics and social semiotics, combining close reading, discourse analysis, and contextual typographic analysis of selected passages from the novel. The textual examples were purposively selected on the basis of visible typographic deviation and narrative relevance. The analysis demonstrates that Roy’s typographic experimentation functions not merely as stylistic ornamentation but as an integral narrative strategy that shapes emphasis, perspective, rhythm, and emotional tone. The findings further indicate that visual-textual forms play a significant role in representing child consciousness, cultural identity, psychological experience, and socio-political tensions embedded within the narrative. By integrating visual and linguistic modes of expression, the novel constructs layered meanings that extend beyond conventional lexical interpretation. The study, therefore, argues that typography in literary discourse operates as a functional semiotic system that contributes to meaning-making, reader engagement, and narrative representation. In doing so, the research highlights the relevance of multimodal and semiotic approaches to literary analysis and expands current discussions in stylistics, visual textuality, and postcolonial literary studies.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Duolingo application in improving the speaking skills of Jordanian EFL learners as well as examining how it affects learners' motivation to learn. A quasi-experimental research design was used to conduct the study, including 50 EFL learners divided evenly into two groups: an experimental group and a control group. Both groups were taught the same instructional content but in the experimental group, the Duolingo application was used as a supplemental learning tool during an eight-week period, whereas the control group used only traditional methods of instruction. Data were collected using a pre- and post-test to measure the speaking skills of participants (pronunciation, fluency, vocabulary, and grammatical accuracy), in addition to a motivation questionnaire. The results indicated statistically significant differences between the groups, showing improvement in the experimental group as compared to the control group in both speaking proficiency as well as motivation to be involved in speaking tasks. Learners using Duolingo recorded a greater degree of improvement in their speaking proficiency and a greater desire to participate in speaking activities. The findings suggest that Duolingo is an effective supplementary tool for developing speaking skills and increasing motivation among EFL learners. The study underscores a pedagogical value in adopting mobile applications in blended learning environments to further support communicative language teaching methods.
Vision 2030, inaugurated in Saudi Arabia in 2016, seeks to diversify the national economy and raise the quality of education, among other strategic objectives. Acknowledging the pivotal role of English language proficiency in realizing these ambitions, the government has enacted a series of reforms targeting English language teaching (ELT) policy and planning. Nevertheless, the efficacy of these policy initiatives over the past decade—particularly their coherence with the overarching aims of Vision 2030—has been insufficiently examined in the ELT context. This review critically analyzed contemporary developments in ELT policy, their implementation, and their effectiveness in furthering Vision 2030’s objectives. Employing a semi-systematic review of policy documents, instructional frameworks, and recent scholarly studies, the analysis synthesizes the current ELT landscape in the Kingdom. The findings reveal persistent fragmentation in ELT policy, with many academic departments operating under implicit, self-formulated guidelines rather than cohesive national directives. This has resulted in a sustained disconnect between policy aspirations and pedagogical realities. At the instructional level, the field is experiencing a gradual, albeit uneven, transition from teacher-centered, assessment-driven practices to student-centered, communicative, technologically mediated, and translanguaging approaches. However, progress is impeded by inadequate teacher preparation, oversized classrooms, and assessment regimes that continue to prioritize rote recall over productive language use. The study proposes five interrelated reform imperatives to align ELT practices with Vision 2030 goals: formalizing context-responsive language policies; revising curricula and assessments to enhance communicative and labor-market relevance; investing in sustained professional development and teacher induction; strategically adopting bilingual, translanguaging, and culturally responsive pedagogies; and embedding technology within a robust pedagogical framework.
This qualitative phenomenological study examines how ESP instructors perceive and integrate Generative AI (GenAI) into university writing instruction, with a focus on the affective, social, and institutional factors that shape their practices. Data were collected through asynchronous, semi-structured, written interviews with 24 English for Specific Purposes (ESP) teachers working in Egyptian higher education contexts and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings indicate that teachers’ engagement with GenAI is not uniform, ranging from technophilic to technophobic orientations, reflecting both enthusiasm for its pedagogical potential and concerns about its implications. Key mediating factors include collegial influence, student expectations, and unclear institutional policies. While participants reported perceived benefits such as enhanced teaching efficacy, diversified writing instruction, and opportunities for professional development, these were accompanied by concerns related to ethics, student overreliance, and the impact on writing authenticity. The study suggests that the integration of GenAI in ESP writing pedagogy is shaped by context-dependent and socially negotiated factors, highlighting the need for clearer institutional guidelines and targeted professional support to facilitate its effective use.
This study examines active listening as a communicative process that shapes the interactional tone of courtroom discourse, focusing on Judge Frank Caprio in the television series Caught in Providence. Using the Active–Empathic Listening Scale (AELS) and the Active Listening Observation Scale (ALOS), the research systematically analyzes how Caprio’s listening behaviors structure judicial interaction. Twenty courtroom episodes representing diverse emotional and situational contexts were transcribed and coded to assess verbal and nonverbal indicators of listening, including paraphrasing, empathic acknowledgments, clarifying questions, and responsive humor. The AELS framework was employed to evaluate internal dimensions of listening - sensing, processing, and responding - while the ALOS captured observable behaviors such as eye contact, prosody, and supportive feedback. Qualitative discourse analysis, supplemented by quantitative rating averages, revealed that Caprio’s communication demonstrates consistently high levels of active-empathic engagement, with adaptability across affective contexts. Inter-rater reliability, measured using Cohen’s kappa, confirmed coder agreement. Findings indicate that Caprio’s courtroom talk operates active listening as a discursive and institutional practice, where empathic responsiveness humanizes authority and enhances perceptions of fairness. The study concludes that active listening, as measured through AELS and ALOS, embodies a communicative enactment of responsiveness, clarity, and respect in judicial settings.
This article presents a comparative corpus-assisted discourse analysis of amplifiers and profanities in the English and French translations of Mo Yan’s Frog. Combining frequency-based corpus profiling with Critical Discourse Analysis, the study examines cross-text differences in amplification and taboo calibration and interprets them in relation to target-language norms, readership expectations, and translator strategy. The results show that the French translation contains a higher normalized frequency within the selected amplifier set, whereas the English translation shows a higher overall profanity rate than the French version. Qualitative analysis further indicates that these differences are mediated by contextual and stylistic factors rather than attributable to translator gender alone. The study contributes to literary translation research by showing how expressive intensity and taboo language are reconfigured across translation contexts through both lexical patterning and discourse-level choices.
This paper examines how Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things (1997) and Meena Kandasamy’s The Gypsy Goddess (2014) deploy the female body as a contested site where systemic violence is inscribed and resisted. Through close reading textual analysis grounded in postcolonial feminism, Dalit feminism, and corporeal feminism, this study shows that both authors write the body not merely as a passive surface of oppression but as an active locus of resistance against intersecting structures of caste, class, gender, and colonial modernity. Roy’s narrative foregrounds the transgressive body of Ammu, whose intercaste desire violates the “Love Laws” that regulate bodily contact across caste boundaries, while Kandasamy’s polyphonic text inscribes the collective trauma of Dalit agricultural labourers whose bodies become sites of state-sanctioned violence during the 1968 Kilvenmani massacre. Both texts reveal how gendered vulnerability operates through what this paper terms “corporeal subjugation”—the systematic targeting of female bodies to enforce social hierarchies. Yet simultaneously, both authors demonstrate how these same bodies become instruments of defiance, articulating forms of resistance that challenge dominant narratives of victimhood. By comparatively analysing specific textual moments where bodily experience intersects with structural violence, this paper argues that Roy and Kandasamy contribute to a distinctly South Asian feminist literary tradition that refuses the separation of body from politics, instead insisting on embodiment as the primary terrain where power is both exercised and contested.
Oral fluency becomes a problem for Saudi EFL students with high foreign language speaking anxiety. Nevertheless, the mechanisms by which fluency and the quality of interactions can be influenced by a generative AI scaffold remain unclear. This study examined generative AI pragmatic scaffolding (GAPSC) and AI Interaction Effects (INTEFF) through the lens of their effects on oral fluency, with self-regulation as the mediating factor and language proficiency as the moderator. The study used a quantitative cross-sectional survey of 345 Saudi university students majoring in English. The data were analyzed using PLS-SEM. The results indicate that GAPSC and INTEFF can be used to predict oral fluency. Similarly, self-regulation played a mediating role in both relationships. Language proficiency negatively moderated the GAPSC fluency relationship and positively moderated the INTEFF fluency relationship. Theoretically, this study contributes to Sociocultural Theory (SCT) and Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) by synthesizing AI scaffolding, interaction effects, and self-regulation into a single fluency model. In practice, this study provides evidence-based recommendations from Saudi educators for creating proficiency-sensitizing AI-mediated support interventions that align with Vision 2030.
This quasi-experimental study examined the effect of the flipped classroom strategy (FCS) on the grammar learning of female Omani grade eleven students as well as their motivation toward learning English. In total, 72 female students attending one public school in A’Seeb, Muscat Governorate, in the 2023/2024 academic year participated in the study. One class of 37 students was assigned as an experimental group and was taught using the FCS whereas another class of 35 students was taught the same grammatical structures using conventional teaching methods as a control group. Two instruments were utilized to collect data: a pre- and post-grammar achievement test and a motivation questionnaire. The results showed a statistically significant improvement in the experimental group’s grammar performance. There were also statistically significant differences between the mean scores in the post-test in favor of the experimental group. However, there were no statistically significant differences in motivation toward learning English before and after applying the FCS. In light of these findings, the study concludes with some implications and recommendations for further research.
This study explored the under-researched role of affective factors in digitally mediated language learning in Saudi EFL settings. It was based on Social Cognitive Theory and Control-Value Theory, using a convergent mixed-methods design involving 238 students of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). This included collecting reflective journals from 42 students and conducting interviews with 16 instructors. Results indicated that the learners had neutral to moderately positive affective orientations with significantly lower anxiety levels and increased engagement in speaking and listening activities, supported by the perceived safety of the online environment. Teacher immediacy and adaptive pedagogy, which were highlighted in the qualitative data, were essential for maintaining motivation. On the other hand, writing was the least engaging skill due to the lack of individualized evaluation and feedback. The study found that affective development is not only an outcome of online language learning but also a major factor that influences both engagement and perceived progress. It therefore necessitates the creation of emotionally responsive and learner-centered online pedagogies, enabled by professional training in instructors’ affective mediation strategies.
This paper aims to investigate the benefits and drawbacks of ChatGPT in the context of EFL writing in Saudi Arabia. Forty-seven university students were selected to participate in the study voluntarily. To combine the depth of qualitative responses with the breadth of quantitative data, they responded to a survey and follow-up interviews. The dataset included both quantitative and qualitative data, which strengthened the scope of analysis. The findings showed that the participants perceived ChatGPT as a helpful tool for improving grammatical structures and vocabulary. Nonetheless, there is less impact on motivation and confidence. Perceptions varied by gender, discipline, and experience with use. The frequency of use strongly correlated with the perceived usefulness of ChatGPT. The interview yielded results supporting ChatGPT’s role in enhancing writing accuracy, organization, and self-confidence. Findings also raised some concerns about the output generated by ChatGPT and its potential for overreliance. Based on the findings, the study suggests teacher training on the responsible use of AI tools for writing skills. Some implications and areas of further research were also put forward at the end of the study.
This study examines the effects of ChatGPT-assisted feedback on the English writing development of Thai university students enrolled in an English for Business course. The research adopted a mixed-methods design involving 60 undergraduates divided into an AI-assisted experimental group (n = 30) and a teacher-led control group (n = 30). The participants were EFL students whose proficiency levels ranged from CEFR B1 to C1. Over an eight-week period, the experimental group used ChatGPT to support English writing and reflect on their own work. Pre- and post-test writing evaluations were analysed using t-tests, with significance set at p < 0.05. Participants’ reflections were analysed using thematic analysis. After triangulating the findings from the pre- and post-tests and reflections, the results showed that both the experimental and control groups significantly improved on their pre-test scores across all four writing criteria. The experimental group demonstrated substantially greater improvement than the control group across all four assessment criteria. More specifically, writing organisation showed the greatest improvement in the experimental group. The thematic analysis findings aligned with the quantitative data, indicating that the experimental participants became more aware of English language mechanics, organisation, and grammar. However, lexical development appeared to require more time for noticeable improvement. The study concludes that AI integration in ELT can serve as an effective tool for Thai learners in higher education. Further investigation into AI integration for EFL writing is recommended.
English plays a significant role in facilitating global economic interaction through international trade, knowledge exchange, and access to global markets. It has become a key language of business, technology, innovation, and higher education, and is increasingly associated with economic development. In Saudi Arabia, ongoing transformations under Vision 2030—particularly in economic diversification, innovation, and global competitiveness—have further increased the strategic importance of English. As the country expands its global engagement and participation in international markets, English supports communication, collaboration, and knowledge transfer across sectors. This study adopts a qualitative review approach to examine the role of English as a global language in shaping economic outcomes, with reference to Saudi Arabia’s economic growth and global integration. The analysis draws on a range of existing research sources, including journal articles, case studies, policy reports, and academic publications. The selected studies explore the relationship between English proficiency and key economic dimensions, including labor and employment, trade and global integration, human capital development, the digital economy and innovation, and foreign investment and tourism. These dimensions align with SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure). The findings suggest that English proficiency is consistently associated with positive economic outcomes across multiple domains. Rather than acting as a standalone skill, English appears to serve as an instrumental factor supporting workforce development, international engagement, and participation in knowledge-based economies. While the study does not establish causal relationships, it highlights recurring patterns in the literature linking English to broader processes of economic development and global integration. These insights are particularly relevant to Saudi Arabia’s efforts to enhance human capital, strengthen global competitiveness, and achieve sustainable economic transformation.
