L2 grit, foreign language enjoyment and motivational depth: predicting subjective task values in English learning

Students’ subjective task values (STVs) are vital in academic learning as they directly influence student engagement and academic performance. STVs are shaped by various personal, psychological, affective and cultural factors. While personality traits, positive emotions and learning motives have been linked to STVs, the degree to which they predict specific dimensions of STVs in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learning remains underexplored. This study investigates the predictive power of L2 grit, foreign language enjoyment and learning motives on different dimensions of STVs among 577 EFL university students in Taiwan. Data were collected through an online questionnaire and analysed using standard multiple regression. The findings revealed that perseverance of effort, personal enjoyment and deep motives positively predicted intrinsic, attainment and utility values. Consistency of interest and social enjoyment positively predicted intrinsic values only, while surface motives negatively predicted intrinsic values. Additionally, teacher appreciation and surface motives positively predicted perceived cost. These results underscore the significance of personal, emotional and motivational factors in shaping students’ task value perceptions in EFL learning.