Abstract:

Abstract The communicative component of language learning has gained importance in line with the needs of the 21st century. So, different factors which influence the communicative ability of language learners has caught the attention of the researchers. Willingness to communicate (WTC) is one of these individual variables which affects the communicative ability of learners and various aspects of this construct are widely  investigated in different language learning contexts. However, the number of studies in Turkish English as a foreign language (EFL) context is limited. Thus, the primary goal of the study was to investigate L2 WTC in Turkey. 711 preparatory school students at a state university completed measures of WTC, communication confidence, motivation, ideal L2 self, learner beliefs, classroom environment,  and a vocabulary test. According to the results of the structural model, the relationships of classroom environment with both WTC in English and communication confidence were fully mediated by motivation to learn English, ideal L2 self, and learner beliefs. Moreover, the relationships of learner beliefs and ideal self with WTC in English were fully mediated by communication confidence. Motivation to learn directly influenced WTC. Lastly, vocabulary size indirectly influenced WTC through communication confidence.

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