Gender differences in the mediation of self-efficacy between teacher support and willingness to communicate among Chinese EFL learners

While many studies have explored the effects of teacher support on foreign language (FL) learners’ willingness to communicate (WTC), the psychological mechanisms through which specific types of teacher support influence L2 WTC and the potential gender differences remain under-examined. To address this gap, the present study investigated emotional, academic, and instrumental support as distinct dimensions of teacher support, examined self-efficacy as a mediating variable within the framework of self-determination theory, and further explored its gender differences through the lens of social role theory. The study involved 4,760 secondary school students from Beijing, China, with a mean age of 14.858 years, and 46.2% of the participants were male. Student-reported measures were used to collect data on teacher academic, emotional, and instrumental support, self-efficacy, and L2 WTC. The structural equation modeling (SEM) results showed that self-efficacy partially mediated the relationship between teacher emotional and instrumental support and L2 WTC, but not academic support. Further analysis using multi-group SEM revealed that these mediation effects were larger in males. These findings provide insights into self-determination theory and social role theory within the context of FL education and have important implications for educational interventions aimed at enhancing communication skills in FL learners. They also contribute to the professional development of FL teachers.