Measuring English Foreign Trade Correspondence Writing Self-Efficacy: Scale Development and Validation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63385/jlss.v1i1.80Keywords:
Foreign Trade Correspondence, Writing Self-Efficacy, Scale Development, Scale ValidationAbstract
With the growing importance of English as a global lingua franca in international trade, the ability to write effective foreign trade correspondence has become an essential skill. However, beyond acquiring knowledge and skills, learners’ self-efficacy—their confidence in applying business knowledge, navigating cultural differences, following letter formatting conventions, and using the English language appropriately plays a decisive role in their performance. Despite its importance, little research has systematically examined self-efficacy in this domain. This study aimed to create and validate the Self-efficacy Scale for English Foreign Trade Correspondence Writing. Exploratory factor analysis, conducted with 399 participants, identified four key dimensions: Business Knowledge, Cultural Awareness, Letter Formatting, and Language Proficiency, which were consistent with the proposed dimensions derived from the elements of Foreign Trade Correspondence. Confirmatory factor analysis, involving 690 participants, indicated a strong fit between the proposed factor structure and the data. The scale demonstrated convergent validity, discriminant validity, and criterion-related validity. However, the study acknowledged limitations, including sample bias from a single institution, the cross-sectional study design and lack of predictive validity evidence. Future research should aim to increase sample diversity and employ a longitudinal design to assess test-retest reliability. Additionally, practical tests and performance data should be included to validate the scale's predictive validity. Overall, the Self-efficacy Scale for English Foreign Trade Correspondence Writing exhibited robust psychometric properties and can be used to measure individuals' self-efficacy levels in this area.
References
[1] Vijayasri, G.V., 2013. The Importance of International Trade in the World. International Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research. 2(9), 111–119. Available from: https://www.enrichedpublications.com/ep_admin/jounral/pdf/1709702009.pdf#page=22
[2] Polachek, S.W., 1997. Why Democracies Cooperate More and Fight Less: The Relationship Between International Trade and Cooperation. Review of International Economics. 5(3), 295–309. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9396.00058
[3] Klimova, I.I., Klimova, G.V., Dubinka, S.A., 2019. Students’ Communicative Competence in the Context of Intercultural Business Communication. European Scientific Language Journal. 12(1), 207–218. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18355/XL.2019.12.01.16
[4] Takino, M., 2017. Power in International Business Communication and Linguistic Competence: Analyzing the Experiences of Nonnative Business People Who Use English as a Business Lingua Franca (BELF). International Journal of Business Communication. 57(4), 517–544. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/2329488417714222
[5] Bao, F., 2021. The Globalization of the English Language and Its Impact on International Trade [Bachelor’s Thesis]. University of Valladolid: Valladolid, Spain. pp. 1–72.
[6] Yip, M.C.W., 2021. The Linkage Among Academic Performance, Learning Strategies and Self-Efficacy of Japanese University Students: A Mixed-Method Approach. Studies in Higher Education. 46(8), 1565–1577. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2019.1695111
[7] Basith, A., Syahputra, A., Ichwanto, M.A., 2020. Academic Self-Efficacy as Predictor of Academic Achievement. JPI (Jurnal Pendidikan Indonesia). 9(1), 163–170. DOI: https://doi.org/10.23887/jpi-undiksha.v9i1.24403
[8] Hewagallage, D.S., Stewart, J.C., 2020. The relation of personality, gender, and self-efficacy to achievement in college science classes. Available from: https://par.nsf.gov/servlets/purl/10170857 (cited 24 March 2023).
[9] Bandura, A., 1986. Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory. Prentice-Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ, USA. pp. 1–169.
[10] Bandura, A., 1997. Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control. W.H. Freeman/Times Books/Henry Holt & Co.: New York, NY, USA. pp. 1–350.
[11] Bandura, A., 2006. Guide for Constructing Self-Efficacy Scales. In: Pajares, F., Urdan, T. (eds.). Self-Efficacy Beliefs of Adolescents. Information Age Publishing: Greenwich, CT, USA. pp. 307–337.
[12] Pajares, F., Graham, L., 1999. Self-Efficacy, Motivation Constructs, and Mathematics Performance of Entering Middle School Students. Contemporary Educational Psychology. 24(2), 124–139. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1998.0991
[13] Vieira, D.A., 2014. Transition from Higher Education to Work: The Power of Self-Efficacy and Professional Objectives. Vida Economica Editorial: Porto, Portugal. pp. 1–250. (in Portuguese)
[14] Meza, P., González, M., 2020. Construction and Validation of the Self-Efficacy Scale for Disciplinary Academic Writing. Cogent Education. 7(1), 1830464. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2020.1830464
[15] Mitchell, K.M., McMillan, D.E., Lobchuk, M.M., et al., 2021. Development and Validation of the Situated Academic Writing Self-Efficacy Scale (SAWSES). Assessing Writing. 48, 100524. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asw.2021.100524
[16] Sun, T., Wang, C., Kim, S.Y., 2022. Psychometric Properties of an English Writing Self-Efficacy Scale: Aspects of Construct Validity. Reading and Writing. 35(3), 743–766. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-021-10206-w
[17] Cuiping, H., Ya, Z., 2019. On Writing Strategies of Business Letters in Cross-Border E-Commerce. East African Scholars Journal of Economics, Business and Management. 2(8), 461–472. Available from: https://www.easpublisher.com/media/features_articles/EASJEBM_28_464-472_c.pdf
[18] Sankrusme, S., 2017. International Business Correspondence. Anchor Academic Publishing: Hamburg, Germany. pp. 1–200.
[19] Shen, D., Wang, Y., 2020. Vocabulary Acquisition in Foreign Trade Correspondence and Recessive Cultural Connotation. Lifelong Education. 9(4), 280–282. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18282/le.v9i4.985
[20] Riadi, A., Angelina, Y., 2020. An Analysis of Literalness Aspect of Google Translate in Translating Business Correspondence. ELSA Journal. 1(1), 1–14. DOI: https://doi.org/10.63848/elsa.v01n1.1
[21] Jiang, S., Li, B., Li, Z., 2017. Analysis on Key Points of Foreign Trade English Correspondence Translation. In Proceedings of the 2017 International Conference on Economics, Finance and Statistics (ICEFS 2017), Hong Kong, China, 14–15 January 2017; pp. 461–466. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2991/icefs-17.2017.61
[22] Karpenko, M., 2021. The Problems of Translating a Business Correspondence. In All Ukrainian Scientific Conference, Social and Humanitarian Aspects of the Development of Modern Society, Sumy Oblast, Ukraine, 15–16 April 2021; pp. 61–66.
[23] Ayvazyan, N., 2022. Linguistic Features of Business Correspondence. Foreign Languages for Special Purposes. 20, 129–154.
[24] Aimoldina, A., Zharkynbekova, S., 2013. Rhetorical and Pragmalinguistic Features of Business Correspondence. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice. 10(1), 1–22.
[25] Czehan, G., 2022. Pragmatic Features of Business Correspondence [Bachelor Thesis]. Saint Petersburg State University: St Petersburg, Russia. pp. 1–80. Available from: https://api.dspace.spbu.ru/server/api/core/bitstreams/66cf0cb7-df08-432b-8d79-314759069f45/content (in Russian)
[26] Mandasari, B., 2020. The Impact of Online Learning Toward Students’ Academic Performance on Business Correspondence Course. EDUTEC: Journal of Education and Technology. 4(1), 98–110. DOI: https://doi.org/10.29062/edu.v4i1.74
[27] Kawinvasin, S., Lertchalermtipakoon, P., Pochote, S., et al., 2021. Using Genre Awareness to Enhance Business Email Correspondence Among EFL Students: Making Complaints. Liberal Arts Review. 16(1), 45–58. Available from: https://so04.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/larhcu/article/view/248656
[28] Kapralikova, I., 2022. Abbreviations in Modern Business Correspondence and Their Pedagogical Implications. CASALC Review. 12(2), 5–22. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5817/CASALC2022-2-1
[29] Cong, C., 2020. Reform of “3+3 Promotion” Teaching Model Based on CDIO—Taking the Course of “Business English Correspondence” as an Example. Education Reform and Development. 2(2), 117–122. DOI: https://doi.org/10.26689/erd.v2i2.2127
[30] Li, Z., 2020. Study on Application of the Coherence Principle to Business English Correspondence and Its Teaching Implications. In Proceedings of the 2020 Conference on Education, Language and Inter-Cultural Communication (ELIC 2020), Zhengzhou, China, 21–22 September 2020; pp. 223–225. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.201127.044
[31] Lin, Y., 2021. Teaching Reform and Design of International Business Correspondence Based on BOPPPS Teaching Model. International Journal of Education and Management. 6, 55–59. Available from: http://www.acadpubl.com/Papers/Vol%206,%20No%203%20(IJEM%202021).pdf#page=61
[32] Tenieshvili, A., 2023. Analysis of Discourse Organization and Metadiscourse Devices in Georgian Business Correspondence: Specifics of Georgian Business Letters and Emails. Language Education and Technology. 3(1), 73–88. Available from: https://langedutech.com/letjournal/index.php/let/article/view/45
[33] Aimoldina, A., 2020. Models for Discourse Analysis of Business Correspondence: Kazakhstani Context. In Proceedings of the X International Conference "Word, Utterance, Text: Cognitive, Pragmatic and Cultural Aspects" (WUT 2020), Chelyabinsk, Russia, 27–29 April 2020; pp. 1–12. Available from: https://www.europeanproceedings.com/article/10.15405/epsbs.2020.08.4
[34] Kipiani, S., 2022. Modal Verbs Indicating Politeness in Business Correspondence. Language and Culture. 27, 1–6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.52340/lac.2022.943
[35] En-Chong, L., 2022. Effects of Rubric-Based and Detailed Peer Feedback on University-Level English as a Foreign Language Students’ Writing Self-Efficacy and Subsequent Revisions. English Teaching and Learning. 46, 59–76. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42321-021-00088-0
[36] Wang, C., Bai, B., 2017. Validating the Instruments to Measure ESL/EFL Learners’ Self-Efficacy Beliefs and Self-Regulated Learning Strategies. TESOL Quarterly. 51(4), 931–947. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.355
[37] Zhang, J.H., Zhang, L.J., Zhu, Y., 2023. Development and Validation of a Genre-Based Second Language (L2) Writing Self-Efficacy Scale. Frontiers in Psychology. 14, 1–13. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1181196
[38] Rattray, J., Jones, M.C., 2007. Essential Elements of Questionnaire Design and Development. Journal of Clinical Nursing. 16(2), 234–243. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2006.01573.x
[39] Zamanzadeh, V., Ghahramanian, A., Rassouli, M., et al., 2015. Design and Implementation Content Validity Study: Development of an Instrument for Measuring Patient-Centered Communication. Journal of Caring Sciences. 4(2), 165–178. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15171/jcs.2015.017
[40] Hair, J.J.F., Black, W.C., Babin, B., et al., 2010. Multivariate Data Analysis. Prentice-Hall, Inc.: Upper Saddle River, NJ, USA.
[41] Fornell, C., Larcker, D.F., 1981. Evaluating Structural Equation Models with Unobservable Variables and Measurement Error. Journal of Marketing Research. 18(1), 39–50. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3151312
[42] Henseler, J., Ringle, C.M., Sarstedt, M., 2015. A New Criterion for Assessing Discriminant Validity in Variance-Based Structural Equation Modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. 43(1), 115–135. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8
PDF
