Pride and shame in CALL: Links to appraisals, engagement, and performance

Abstract

Guided by the control-value theory of achievement emotions, this study examines the relationships among two understudied foreign language emotions, namely pride and shame, control-value appraisals, engagement, and performance in a Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) setting. A total of 652 Chinese university students from a massive open online course (MOOC) participated in the study. Structural equation modeling (SEM) results showed that control and value appraisals positively predicted pride but negatively predicted shame. Pride positively predicted each of the three dimensions of engagement (i.e., cognitive, emotional, and behavioral) while shame negatively predicted these dimensions, except for cognitive engagement. Emotional and behavioral engagement, but not cognitive engagement, positively predicted performance. Pride and shame mediated the relationship between control-value appraisals and emotional and behavioral engagement, which, in turn, mediated the relationship between pride or shame and performance. By contrast, pathways through cognitive engagement were not significantly linked to performance. Overall, pride and shame, along with emotional and behavioral engagement rather than cognitive engagement serially mediated the relationship between control-value appraisals and performance. We discuss the implications for language teachers and highlight the importance of addressing pride and shame, alongside their appraisal antecedents and learning outcomes in CALL.