Foreign Language Learning Boredom, Academic Engagement, and Achievement: A Mediation Model

Abstract

Boredom, as a commonly experienced negative, deactivating achievement emotion, is significantly correlated with the key indicators of academic and well-being outcomes. However, compared with enjoyment and anxiety, boredom in the field of English as a foreign language (EFL), especially the mediating mechanism of boredom on academic performance, still remains relatively unexplored. This study aimed to test whether academic engagement mediated the relationship between boredom and academic achievement in the EFL setting. Data were collected from 535 Chinese EFL secondary school students. Structural equation model (SEM) was used to analyze the data. The findings showed that boredom negatively predicted EFL achievement and academic engagement mediated the relation between boredom and EFL achievement. Limitations and implications are discussed.