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University students’ resilience in virtual education, personal best goals, anxiety, and academic achievement: towards the prospects of effective virtual education

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Abstract

Amidst COVID-19, most of the students of higher education faced with different adversities and challenges when learning via Virtual Education (VE). Resilience in virtual education (RVE) seems of high importance in this regard, and its association with other psychological constructs can be of value for educationalists. Therefore, this research is aimed at elucidating on the role of English as a foreign language (EFL) university students’ RVE in personal best (PB) goals and second language (L2) anxiety. Moreover, it examined whether these constructs act as factors contributing to language achievement. To do so, a total number of 611 university students from three universities in Mashhad, an Iranian city, in December 2022 and August 2023 were requested to answer three questionnaires. To measure participants’ RVE, resilience in virtual education scale (RVES) designed and validated by Ghanizadeh and Majidi (forthc.) was utilized. Learners’ PB goals were assessed via the Scale developed by Martin (2006). To evaluate L2 anxiety, six items out of the Dörnyei’s L2 Motivational Self System (2005) were employed. The results yeided via structural equation modeling (SEM) indicated that RVE can predict all three constructs, though negatively with reference to L2 anxiety and positively for PB and language achievement. Language achievement was influenced positively by PB goals and negatively by L2 anxiety. It was also demonstrated that RVE can predict language achievement indirectly via its impact on L2 anxiety and PB in addition to the direct effect. Therefore, it was affirmed that EFL university students’ RVE plays key role in predicting learners’ psychological factors and their academic success.

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  1. English Department, Imam Reza International University, Mashhad, Iran

    Maryam Majidi Yazdi & Afsaneh Ghanizadeh

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  1. Maryam Majidi Yazdi
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Afsaneh Ghanizadeh designed the study, conducted the statistical analysis, and revised the earlier drafts. Maryam Majidi Yazdi wrote the first draft of the study and collected the data.

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Correspondence to Afsaneh Ghanizadeh.

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Yazdi, M.M., Ghanizadeh, A. University students’ resilience in virtual education, personal best goals, anxiety, and academic achievement: towards the prospects of effective virtual education. Curr Psychol 43, 12447–12461 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-05330-5

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