Motivation and written corrective feedback: How students' implicit theories of writing intelligence influence their writing motivation and orientation to written corrective feedback

One of the most perplexing topics for second language writing educators is students' various treatments of written corrective feedback (WCF). Drawing on Dweck's theories of motivation (1988, 2004), the current study intends to investigate how language learners' implicit theories of intelligence influence their orientation to WCF as well as their motivation. A three questionnaires on motivation, WCF, and a background questionnaire totaling 73-items was given to 142 English language learners at a midwestern university in the United States. The results of multiple regression analyses showed that the students' who have an incremental theory of writing intelligence (the belief that intelligence as something that is dynamic and can be developed through effort and experience) have a stronger tendency towards receiving and acting upon feedback compared to the students who have an entity theory of writing intelligence (the belief that intelligence is fixed and unchangeable). In addition, the incremental theory of intelligence was a strong predictor of writing motivation whereas the entity theory did not predict motivation. The research and pedagogical implications of the study are discussed.