The Role of HEXACO Personality Traits in Predicting the Speaking Ability of Male and Female EFL Learners

Document Type: Original Article

Authors

1 Ph.D. Candidate, Department of English Language, Khorasgan (Isfahan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran

2 Department of English Language, Khorasgan (Isfahan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran

Abstract

This study investigated the predictive role of HEXACO personality traits (honesty-humility, emotionality, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience) in the speaking performance of Iranian EFL learners, as well as the role of gender in the relationship between HEXACO personality traits and EFL learners’ speaking ability. To this end, 250 learners (125 male and 125 female learners) were selected using a random cluster sampling method and were asked to complete the HEXACO personality traits questionnaire. The speaking ability of all the learners was checked via a scored interview and then was evaluated by three interviewers based on the IELTS speaking bands. Fisher's Z and multiple regressions were used to analyze the data. The results indicated that extraversion, conscientiousness, and altruism could predict 90.3 percent of the variance in the speaking ability of the participants. The findings also showed that the gender of the language learners did not have a predicting role in the relationship between personality traits of the language learners and their speaking ability.

Keywords

References

  1. Abdallah, R. H. (2014). Personality types as predictors of oral proficiency. Unpublished M. A. Thesis in TEFL. University of Cairo.
  2. Adelifar, M., Jafarzadeh, Z., Abbasnejhad, Gh., & Shoa Hasani, A. (2016). The relationship between personality traits and WTC in EFL context. Journal of Studies in Social Sciences and Humanities, 2(2), 45-54.
  3. Ashton, M. C., & Lee, K. (2004). Psychometric properties of the HEXACO personality inventory. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 39(2), 329-358. 
  4. Ashton, M. C., & Lee, K. (2007). Empirical, theoretical, and practical advantages of the HEXACO model of personality structure. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 11,150–166.
  5. Ashton, M. C., & Lee, K. (2008). The prediction of Honesty–Humility-related criteria by the HEXACO and Five-Factor Models of personality. Journal of Research in Personality, 42(5), 1216-1228.
  6. Barekat, M., & Tabatabaei, O. (2013). Relationship between the big five personality traits and L2 speaking ability: A case of Iranian University students. Journal of Social Issues and Humanities, 1 (3), 42-47.
  7. Bouhenika, M. (2015).  The effects of personality variables; extroversion, anxiety, and risk taking on the learning of spoken English at university. Case study: Second year students at the English. Unpublished thesis dissertation. University Mentouri Bros, Algeria.
  8. Burkart, G., & Sheppard, K. (2004). A descriptive study of content-ESL practices, Vol. III: Training packet Material. Retrieved January 26, 2016, from http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/pubs/cal/contentesl/ index.htm.
  9. Daele, V. S. (2005). The effects of extraversion on L2 oral proficiency. Circulo de Linguistica Aplicada a la Comunicacion, 24, 91-114.
  10. Dewaele, J. M. (2013). The link between foreign language classroom anxiety and psychoticism, extraversion, and neuroticism among adult bi and multilinguals. The Modern Language Journal, 97(3),670-684.
  11. Ghapanchi, Z., Khajavy, G. H., & Asadpour, S. F. (2011). L2 motivation and personality as predictors of the Second language proficiency: Role of the Big Five traits and L2 motivational self-system. Canadian Social Science, 7(6), 148- 155.
  12. Horwitz, E., Horwitz, M., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. Modern Language Journal, 26, 125-132.
  13. Maghsoudi, M., Samadi, F., & Aziz Mohammadi, F. (2013). The effect of big five personality traits in Iranian EFL bilingual learners. International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 2(4-1), 26-32.
  14. McCrae, R.R., & Costa, P.T. (1987). Validation of the Five-Factor Model of Personality across       Instruments and Observers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52(1), 81-90.
  15. Moqaddas, L., Gol, M., & Haqshenas, S. (2013). The effect of personality traits on speaking ability across gender: A case of Iranian EFL learners. International Researcher, 2(4), 34-44.
  16. Moutafi, J., Furnham, A., & Crump, J. (2003). Demographic and personality predictors of intelligence: a study using the NEO-Personality Inventory and the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator. European Journal of Personality, 17(3), 79–94.
  17. O’Connor, M. C., & Paunonen, S. V. (2007). Big Five personality predictors of post-secondary academic performance. Personality and Individual Differences, 43, 971-990.
  18. Oz, H. (2014). Big five personality traits and willingness to communicate among foreign language learners in Turkey. Social Behavior and Personality, 42(9), 1473-1482.
  19. Takač, V. P., & Požega, D. (2011). Personality traits, willingness to communicate and oral proficiency in English as a foreign language. In L. Pon, V. Karabaliş, & S. Cimer (Eds.), Applied linguistics today: Research and perspectives (pp. 67-82). Berlin, Germany: Lang.
  20. Ranjbaran Oskouei, Sh., & Ramezani, A. (2011). The effect of emotionality and openness to experience on vocabulary learning strategies of Iranian EFL students. The Journal of Applied Linguistics, 4(2), 152-164.
  21. Richards, J. C. (2008). Teaching listening and speaking: From theory to practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  22. Schultz, D. P., & Schultz, S. E. (2013). Theories of personality. Belmont: Wadsworth.
  23. Sepehri, Z., Rakhshani, F., Keshavarz, K., & Kiani, Z. (2013). Effect of personality on learning language. International Conference, ICT for Language Learning.
  24. Souzandehfar, M., Soozandehfar, A., Farsi, M., & Sharif, M. (2014). Which personality trait performs better on IELTS speaking test? Extroverted or introverted? Advances in Environmental Biology, 8(6), 2159-2168.
  25. Shumin, K. (2002). Factors to consider: Developing adult EFL students' speaking abilities. Methodology in language teaching: An Anthology of Current Practice, 12, 204-211.
  26. Triandis, H. C., & Suh, E. M. (2002). Cultural influences on personality. Annual Review of Psychology, 53(1), 133-160.
  27. Van Daele, S. (2005). The effect of extraversion on L2 oral proficiency. CÍRCULO de Lingüística Aplicada a la Comunicación (clac), 24, 91-114.
  28. Young, D. J. (1990). An investigation of students' perspectives on anxiety and speaking. Foreign Language Annals, 23, 539-553.
  29. Yusef-Hasirchin, M. (2014). The effect of extraversion and introversion on fluent speaking on Iranian EFL students. Enjoy Teaching Journal, 2(1), 28-39.
Iranian journal of Learning and Memory

Volume 2, Issue 5
Spring 2019
Pages 7-17

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics