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@article{206416,
        author = {Ms. Sreevidya K.S and Dr. Janardan Shukla},
        title = {PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS INFLUENCING SECOND LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF LEARNERS IN INDIAN HIGHER EDUCATION},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {2},
        pages = {1282-1293},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=206416},
        abstract = {Proficiency in L2 is determined not only by the exposure to the target language in the classroom and the aptitude but also by a combination of psychological factors that act as a filter in dealing with L2. Empirically the present study discusses the impact of six psychological factors motivation, language learning anxiety, self-efficacy, attitude towards the target language, willingness to communicate (WTC) and language aptitude on English language proficiency of students in Indian higher education. Employing a quantitative cross sectional survey approach, the sample population was aimed at a set of 320 undergraduate/post graduate learners from 4 academic streams (4 Locations) of India by utilizing validated psychometric instruments along with a standardized proficiency assessment.
Pearson correlation was used to determine associations between the psychological variables and the proficiency scores and multiple linear regression to model the relationship; in addition, independent-samples t-tests and one-way analyses of variance (ANOVA) were conducted to examine differences in psychological scores by demographic. Results show that all the six factors are significantly correlated with proficiency (ration between .48 and .63, p < .001) and that, in a combined regression model, all the six factors explain approximately 64% of the variance in the proficiency scores (R2 = .638, F (6,313) = 92.07, p < .001). Self-efficacy and aptitude were the best predictors, with willingness to communicate not being an independent factor after shared variance with the other predictors was calculated. There were no significant differences among gender, school medium of instruction and academic stream. The results stress the need for an integrated affective-cognitive approach to L2 acquisition, and thus have implications for curricular and classroom planning and support services in higher education institutions in India.},
        keywords = {Second Language Acquisition; Psychological Factors; Motivation; Language Anxiety; Self-Efficacy; Indian Higher Education; L2 Proficiency},
        month = {July},
        }