An examination of turkish college-level students’ learned helplessness states in efl context

Abstract

Human learning is multi-dimensional and progressive in nature, and it lasts a lifetime, getting influenced through a variety of elements. One of those elements, that is students' own mental lives, nurture and complete this process since students' standpoints pertinent to learning can give a certain shape to their own learning and provide insight into their stance as language learners. Misconceptions or negative beliefs also have a role in shaping this process. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the sense of helplessness felt among the university students learning English as a foreign language and the probable reasons behind learned helplessness in EFL context. The data were gathered from a state university in Turkey and the participants of the study were chosen via "Purposive Sampling". A total of 35 students, which include freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors participated in the study. Data were collected through Learned Helplessness Scale, open-ended learned helplessness questionnaire and grid table. The quantitative data were analysed with the use of SPSS, on the other hand, the qualitative data were subjected to content analysis. Thus, the present study used mixed research design. The study findings pictured two groups of students with and without learned helplessness, and uncovered the students' self-concepts as language learners and beliefs on learned helplessness in learning English.

The effect of airline service major students’ employment stress on learned helplessness and employment preparation behavior: a moderated mediation model of resilience

“…For more insightful research on student's stress, Grant et al [27] argued that it is necessary to analyze the mediator or moderator variables that might affect the relationship between student's stress and behavioral outcomes. Learned helplessness perceived by students has been considered as an important concept [28], because it is driven from students' stress, and it increase adverse outcomes or decrease positive outcomes. If students face a state of lethargy due to repeated experiences of stress, schools can become a hotbed of learned helplessness [29].…”

Students' Learned Helplessness and Teachers' Care in EFL Classrooms

“…Failure is bound to happen in any educational cycle. Nevertheless, what puts an end to education is not failure but the students' response to it, which happens to also mold their education (Daggol, 2018 ). Attributions are the grounds for individuals' achievements or failures when performing a specific assignment and regular attributes in a scholastic environment include endeavor, innate capability or intellectual capacity, difficult assignments, educators' support, and individual help (Horner and Gaither, 2004 ).…”