The Role of Academic Locus of Control and Technology Use in Predicting EFL Learners’ Language Learning Motivation

Abstract

Academic locus of control describes whether learners attribute academic outcomes to their own effort or to forces beyond their control. It has long been associated with motivation and academic achievement in foreign language learning. At the same time, the digital resources available to language learners have expanded from established information and communication technologies (ICTs) to generative artificial intelligence (AI) applications, creating new opportunities for learning English beyond the classroom. Despite these developments, the mechanism linking learners' control beliefs to their engagement with digital technologies remains insufficiently explained. Building on a two-phase pilot study that validated the measurement instruments, this paper proposes a conceptual framework that connects academic locus of control, technology use, and language learning motivation in the English as a foreign language context. Drawing on attribution theory and learner agency, it argues that an internal orientation encourages the agentic behaviour through which learners seek out and continue using digital learning tools. Within the framework, the use of information and communication technologies and the use of artificial intelligence are conceptualized as two parallel channels through which control beliefs influence language learning motivation. The framework is presented as a set of testable directional propositions covering the direct relationship, the mediating role of each technology channel, and a cross-national boundary condition involving Hungarian and Algerian learners. The paper also explains the theoretical rationale for these propositions, relates the framework to existing research on technology in language education, and outlines the cross-sectional design planned for its empirical examination.