Effects of intensive EFL immersion programmes on willingness to communicate

Few studies have examined willingness to communicate (WtC) changes resulting from short-term intensive immersion programmes. This study investigated the antecedents to and changes in WtC during one such programme held at a Macau university. The programme required students to reside on campus and participate in extensive task-based communicative language classes and fluency activities with a range of interlocutors from different backgrounds. Pre- and post-programme questionnaire data were collected, and regression analyses indicated perceived competence as the largest predictor for WtC. Repeated measure t-tests indicated significant improvement in WtC and the underlying components of perceived competence, language use anxiety and motivation for language learning as a result of the programme. The results support previous studies on WtC predictors, and suggest short-term intensive English programmes held within the home country of students can be as beneficial to WtC as longer term immersion or study abroad programmes.