Iranian EFL Learners’ Use of Interactional Methods Across Type A and Type B Personality Profiles

Authors

  • Akram Nayernia Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, Iran
  • Vajiheh Mostafa Farhagian University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61227/iltt.v1i2.241

Keywords:

Type A/Type B personality, interactional methods, coping, controlling, channeling, Iranian EFL learners, classroom interaction

Abstract

Personality is a key individual-difference variable in Second Language (L2) learning, yet research has rarely examined how Type A/Type B personality patterns relate to learners’ interactional methods in EFL classrooms. This study investigated whether Iranian EFL learners with Type A and Type B profiles differ in their use of three interactional methods—coping, controlling, and channeling—and whether personality type is associated with interactional tendencies. Participants were 100 female Iranian high school EFL learners (ages 15–19) from Esfahan province. Data were collected using the Type A/B Questionnaire (Yan, 2024) and the QAMIC Interactional Methods Questionnaire (Mongeau & Tremblay, 2014). Descriptive statistics and inferential analyses were used to examine group differences and associations. Results confirmed a clear separation between Type A and Type B learners in personality scores, supporting the validity of the classification. However, no significant differences were found between Type A and Type B groups in coping, controlling, or channeling scores, and no significant relationship emerged between personality type and overall interactional method use. These findings suggest that Type A/B personality patterns alone may not predict EFL learners’ interactional method preferences in structured school contexts. Implications for classroom support and future research using more fine-grained personality models and mixed-method designs are discussed.

References

Busato, V. V., Prins, F. J., Elshout, J. J., & Hamaker, C. (2000). Intellectual ability, learning style, personality, achievement motivation, and academic success of psychology students. Personality and Individual Differences, 29(6), 1057–1068.

Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Weintraub, J. K. (1989). Assessing coping strategies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56(2), 267–283.

Chamorro-Premuzic, T., & Furnham, A. (2014). Personality and intellectual competence. Psychology Press.

Dewaele, J. M., & Furnham, A. (2000). Personality and speech production: A pilot study of second language learners. Personality and Individual differences, 28(2), 355-365.

Dewaele, J. M., & Li, C. (2021). Teacher enthusiasm and students’ social-behavioral learning engagement: The mediating role of student enjoyment and boredom in Chinese EFL classes. Language Teaching Research, 25(6), 922-945.

Dewaele, J. M., & MacIntyre, P. D. (2014). The two faces of Janus? Anxiety and enjoyment in the foreign language classroom. Studies in second language learning and teaching, 4(2), 237-274.

Deary, I. J. (2009). The trait approach to personality. The Cambridge handbook of personality psychology, 1, 89.

Dörnyei, Z., & Ryan, S. (2015). The psychology of the language learner revisited. Routledge.

Ellis, R. (2008). The study of second language acquisition (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.

Entwistle, N., & McCune, V. (2004). The conceptual bases of study strategy inventories. Educational Psychology Review, 16(4), 325-345.

Furnham, A., Jackson, C. J., & Miller, T. (1999). Personality, learning style and work performance. Personality and individual differences, 27(6), 1113-1122.

Gass, S. M., & Mackey, A. (2014). Input, interaction, and output in second language acquisition. In Theories in second language acquisition (pp. 194-220). Routledge.

Komarraju, M., Karau, S. J., Schmeck, R. R., & Avdic, A. (2011). The Big Five personality traits, learning styles, and academic achievement. Personality and individual differences, 51(4), 472-477.

Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. Springer.

Long, M. (1996). The role of the linguistic environment in second language acquisition. Handbook of second language acquisition.

MacIntyre, P. D., & Mercer, S. (2014). Introducing positive psychology to SLA. Studies in second language learning and teaching, 4(2), 153-172.

MacIntyre, P. D., Clément, R., Dörnyei, Z., & Noels, K. A. (1998). Conceptualizing willingness to communicate in a L2: A situational model of L2 confidence and affiliation. The modern language journal, 82(4), 545-562.

Mercer, S. (2019). Language learner engagement. In X. Gao (Ed.), Second handbook of English language teaching (pp. 643–660). Springer.

Mercer, S., & Dörnyei, Z. (2020). Engaging language learners in contemporary classrooms. Cambridge University Press.

Mongeau, P., & Tremblay, J. (2014). QAMIG Questionnaire d’auto-évaluation de ses modes d’interactions en groupe: Guide d’interprétation. Montréal: Mongeau-Tremblay.

Oxford, R. (2018). Language learning strategies. The Cambridge guide to learning English as a second language, 81-90.

Poropat, A. E. (2009). A meta-analysis of the Five-Factor Model of personality and academic performance. Psychological Bulletin, 135(2), 322–338. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014996

Putwain, D. W., Wood, P., & Pekrun, R. (2022). Achievement emotions and academic achievement: Reciprocal relations and the moderating influence of academic buoyancy. Journal of Educational Psychology, 114(1), 108.

Rotter, J. B. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological monographs: General and applied, 80(1), 1.

Teimouri, Y., Goetze, J., & Plonsky, L. (2019). Second language anxiety and achievement: A meta-analysis. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 41(2), 363–387. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263118000239

Samaras, A., & Galanakis, M. (2022). Type A and Type B Personality Types: An Evaluation in the Modern Organizational Psychology Scope. Psychology, 12(12), 951-956.

Vollrath, M., & Torgersen, S. (2000). Personality types and coping. Personality and individual differences, 29(2), 367-378.

Walsh, S. (2011). Exploring classroom discourse: Language in action. Routledge.

Yan, X. (2024). Type A-B Personality Test. In Encyclopedia of Psychology. Encyclopedia of China Publishing House.

Zimmerman, B. J. (2000). Attaining self-regulation: A social cognitive perspective. In Handbook of self-regulation (pp. 13-39). Academic press.

Additional Files

Published

2025-12-29

 


How to Cite

Nayernia, A. ., & Mostafa, V. (2025). Iranian EFL Learners’ Use of Interactional Methods Across Type A and Type B Personality Profiles. Innovation in Language Testing and Teaching, 1(2), 126–139. https://doi.org/10.61227/iltt.v1i2.241

Similar Articles

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.