Boosting Autonomous Foreign Language Learning: Scrutinizing the Role of Creativity, Critical Thinking, and Vocabulary Learning Strategies

This study set out to investigate the association among English language learners' Autonomy (AU), Creativity (CR), Critical Thinking (CT), and Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLS). The participants of this study were 202 randomly selected male and female undergraduate (English as a Foreign Language) EFL learners, between the ages of 19 and 26 (M age = 22 years). These participants filled out four questionnaires estimating their AU, CR, CT, and VLS. The characteristics of the collected data legitimated running Pearson's product-moment correlation coefficient. The results suggested that there is a significant and positive relationship between EFL learners' AU and CR, AU and CT, AU and VLS, CR and CT, CR and VLS, as well as their CT and VLS. Considering AU as the predicted variable for this study, it was confirmed that CT is the best predictor of AU. The article concludes with some pedagogical implications and some avenues for future research.