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WILLINGNESS TO COMMUNICATE AND

SELF-EFFICACY IN ENGLISH AMONG EMPLOYEES

IN A BANKING INSTITUTION IN BANGKOK

BY

MR.WEERAYUTH PIANRAPEEKUL

AN INDEPENDENT STUDY PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL

FULFILLMENT OF

THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF

MASTER OF ARTS IN CAREER ENGLISH FOR

INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATION

LANGUAGE INSTITUTE, THAMMASAT UNIVERSITY

ACADEMIC YEAR 2016

COPYRIGHT OF THAMMASAT UNIVERSITY


WILLINGNESS TO COMMUNICATE AND

SELF-EFFICACY IN ENGLISH AMONG EMPLOYEES

IN A BANKING INSTITUTION IN BANGKOK

BY

MR. WEERAYUTH PIANRAPEEKUL

AN INDEPENDENT STUDY PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL

FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE

OF MASTER OF ARTS IN CAREER ENGLISH FOR

INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATION

LANGUAGE INSTITUTE, THAMMASAT UNIVERSITY

ACADEMIC YEAR 2016

COPYRIGHT OF THAMMASAT UNIVERSITY

THAMMASA T UNIVERSITY

LANGUAGE INSTITUTE

INDEPENDENT STUDY PAPER

BY

MR.WEERA YUTH PIANRAPEEKUL

ENTITLED

WILLINGNESS TO COMMUNICATE AND SELF-EFFICACY IN ENGLISH

AMONG EMPLOYEES IN A BANKING INSTITUTION IN BANGKOK

was approved as partial fulfillment of the requirements for

the degree of Master of Arts in Career English for International Communication

on June 24, 2017

Chairman

(Associate Professor Noppom Sarobol)

Member and Advisor Af.,Mc,,,.,...- S7� (Nantikam Simasangyapom, Ph.D.)

Dean

(Associate Professor Pomsiri Singhapreecha, Ph.D.)


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Independent Study Paper Title WILLINGNESS TO COMMUNICATE AND

SELF-EFFICACY IN ENGLISH AMONG

EMPLOYEES IN A BANKING INSTITUTION

IN BANGKOK

Author Mr. Weerayuth Pianrapeekul

Degree Master of Arts

Major Field/Faculty/University Career English for International Communication

Language Institute

Thammasat University

Independent Study Paper Advisor Nantikarn Simasangyaporn, Ph.D.

Academic Years 2016

ABSTRACT

With the expansion of international banking business, people from

different regions use English as a medium to communicate when dealing with

financial transactions. However, business possibly suffers if the employees in banking

institutions lack the willingness to communicate in English. This study aimed to

investigate the level willingness to communicate and self-efficacy together with the

relationship between these variables; moreover, the participants’ views on methods to

improve their confidence in English communication were gathered. Data were derived

from 151 employees in a banking institution in Bangkok using a self-administrated

questionnaire. The findings revealed that bank employees possessed the willingness to

communicate and self-efficacy in English at a slightly higher than moderate level and

that the willingness to communicate and self-efficacy were correlated. Employees in a

banking institution valued a training course with native English speaking teachers as

well as self-practice outside the workplace. Bank employees need to enhance their

willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in English because a higher level of

willingness to communicate and self-efficacy would make communication in the

banking industry more effective. As this study focused only on an American bank


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context, it is recommended that the willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in

English in a local bank context should be studied extensively.

Keywords: willingness to communicate, self-efficacy, banking institution


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The success of my study has been occurred through the encouragement,

guidance and support from several people. The first person who I would like to

express my endless appreciation to is Dr. Nantikarn Simasangyaporn, my advisor.

I was able to overcome academic difficulties because of her intelligence and great

contribution. She always encouraged me with a positive attitude and emphasis on the

possibility of my academic accomplishment.

I would like to thank Ms. Sunanta Vejchalermjit, an experienced banker,

for her constructive advice regarding my research instrument. She was very kind and

supportive when I had an obstacle regarding information about the banking context.

I would also like to thank my friends at the Language Institute,

Thammasat University and the colleagues at my workplace for their encouragement

and support.

The most important people whom I would like to express my appreciation

to again are the 151 participants in this study. Their opinions were a key factor for the

success of this study. Lastly, I would like to thank my family for long-lasting love,

understanding and support.

Mr.Weerayuth Pianrapeekul


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ABSTRACT (1)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS (3)

LIST OF TABLES (7)

LIST OF FIGURES (8)

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Background 1

1.2 Statement of the problem 2

1.3 Objective of the study 3

1.4 Research questions 4

1.5 Scope and limitation of the study 4

1.6 Significance of the study 4

1.7 Definition of the terms 5

1.8 Organization of the study 5

CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE 7

2.1 Language proficiency 7

2.2 Definition of willingness to communicate 7

2.3 Definition of self-efficacy 10

2.4 Relevant studies in an international context 12

2.5 Relevant studies in Thai context 14


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CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 17

3.1 Design of the study 17

3.2 Context of the study 17

3.3 Participants 18

3.4 Procedure and research design 18

3.5 Research instrument 19

3.5.1 Data collection 20

3.5.2 Data analysis 20

CHAPTER 4 RESULTS 22

4.1 Personal attributes of the participants 22

4.2 Level of willingness to communicate in English 25

4.3 Level of self-efficacy in English 32

4.4 Relationship between willingness to communication and self-efficacy 35

4.5 Open-ended questions 37

4.5.1 When are you most comfortable to talk to someone in English? 37

4.5.2 In terms of listening and speaking, what kind of activity do you

think you can do well? 38

4.5.3 What can help bank employees to be more confident when

communicating in English? 38

CHAPTER 5 DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 40

5.1 Summary of the study 40

5.1.1 Objective of the study 40

5.1.2 Participants, instrument and procedure of the study 40

5.2 Summary of findings 41


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5.2.1 Personal attributes information 41

5.2.2 Report of level of willingness to communicate in English 42

5.2.3 Report of level of self-efficacy in English 42

5.2.4 Report of relationship between willingness to communicate and

self-efficacy 42

5.2.5 Report of open-ended question regarding the method to help

employees in a banking institution in Bangkok to be more confident

when communicating in English. 43

5.3 DISCUSSION 43

5.3.1 Level of willingness to communicate in English 44

5.3.2 Level of self-efficacy in English 44

5.3.3 Relationship between willingness to communication and

self-efficacy in English 45 5.3.4. The method to make bank employees more confident when

communicating in English 46

5.4 CONCLUSION 46

5.5 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY 47

REFERENCES 48

APPENDIX

APPENDIX A 52

BIOGRAPHY 60


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LIST OF TABLES

Tables Page

3.1 Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient of variables in the questionnaire 20

4.1 Gender of the participants 22

4.2 Age of the participants 23

4.3 Educational level of the participants 23

4.4 Corporate title of the participants 24

4.5 Years of Employment of the participants 24

4.6 Attending to English listening and speaking course of the participants 25

4.7 Self-evaluation towards oral English proficiency of the participants 25

4.8 Level of willingness to communicate in English with English native

speaking customers 26

4.9 Level of willingness to communicate in English with Non-English native

speaking customers 28

4.10 Level of willingness to communicate in English with foreign colleagues 30

4.11 Level of self-efficacy in English 32

4.12 Spearman Correlation between willingness to communicate and

self-efficacy in English of employees in a banking institution in Bangkok 36


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LIST OF FIGURES

Figures Page

2.1 Heuristic model of variables influencing WTC 8


1

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background

In the age of globalization, the world has become a smaller place for people to

travel and interact. In this sense, English language takes a role of lingua franca in

several regions of the world. Recently, the countries of South-East Asia have made an

agreement to establish an association for regional cooperation and it known as the

ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). This agreement offers opportunities in the

form of a huge market of US$ 2.6 trillion and over 622 million people (ASEAN

Economic Community, 2016). The determination from AEC’s principle results in

unlimited allocation of people and business executives; thus, it goes without saying

that English language is used as a medium in communication to support the business

growth in ASEAN countries.

In a borderless market like the AEC, there is no exception for banking

business. The banking sector plays a crucial role to facilitate cross-countries financial

transactions. People from several regions need to transact both incoming and outgoing

funds to support their businesses or personal expenses. Banks are where foreigners

visit first when they want to do money transactions. People from overseas need to

open bank accounts or they might apply for credit cards. Moreover, discussion is

needed when foreigners wonder about product features or benefits. Upon completing

all of these activities, English is utilized as a medium of communication between bank

employees and customers. Despite the rising importance of English, some bank

employees avoid to communicate with foreign customers.

The theories that can best explain this situation are the willingness to

communicate (WTC) and self-efficacy principle. Willingness to communicate

accounts for avoidance or initiation of communication in English language. An

individual’s willingness to communicate is usually changeable, depending on many

components, namely, the level of acquaintance among the interlocutors, number of

participants in the discussion, the topic of the discussion, and the language used for

discourse in the communication. For example, bank employees have to change


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language from Thai to English when they need to explain terms and conditions of

banking product to foreign customers, so it affects their WTC (Macintyre, Dornyei,

Clement, & Noels, 1998). Therefore, the level of willingness to communicate could

be a factor influencing the avoidance and approaching communication in English.

Aside from WTC, self-efficacy also explains people’s behavior in using English as a

medium to communicate. The local bank employees regularly face the difficulty in

using English to interact with non-Thai customers. In this sense, self-efficacy

accounts for one’s behavior in dealing with difficult and aversive experiences. The

self-efficacy of each individual affects how people deal with obstacles in

communication (Bandura, 1977). If communicating in English is defined as an event

that affects bank employees’ life, the self-efficacy principle seems to explain why

some bank employees avoid whereas some initiate communication with foreigners.

Willingness to communicate and self-efficacy are used as variables in the

conceptual framework of several studies and these variables have been widely tested

with undergraduate participants. Researchers have carried out studies with college

students who are outside their home countries and the learners who are studying

English as a second or foreign language. (e.g. Peng, 2007; Robson, 2015; Mirsane,

2016). Nevertheless, little research has been done on the willingness to communicate

and self-efficacy in English language among working adults. The environment in

business contexts also impacts WTC and self-efficacy in different ways. An

investigation of WTC and self-efficacy in English of the graduate is thus beneficial.

1.2 Statement of the problem

In Thailand, bank employees might encounter obstacles to communicating

with foreign customers and international colleagues because they use English as a

foreign language. According to the report of Education First, the workforce in

Thailand is in the lowest English proficiency band. People in the low English

proficiency band are characterized by their inability to understand and interact in

complex discourse. The English language proficiency of the workforce in the banking

sector is at a moderate level and it might cause difficult interactions in English

language of bank employees (EF English Proficiency Index for Companies, 2016).

With the low English proficiency of employees in this context, foreign customers or


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non-Thai coworkers are neglected and it leads to failure across the business. From

observing real-life situations, the problem in a banking context is the avoidance to

communicate in English of employees. The majority of bank employees avoid

communicating with foreign customers and non-Thai colleagues while few bankers

initiate communication. For example, the queries in the business discussion are not

promptly responded to, which makes some task unnecessarily time-consuming and

annoys foreign co-workers during meetings. Moreover, the avoidance of speaking

English with the customer brings about job procrastination. The job backlog increases

over the time and finally it must be allocated to other colleagues who have a better

English proficiency. From my personal experience, other staff with better English

proficiency consider this solution as unfair, which results in negative feedback to their

manager at year-end appraisals.

1.3 Objectives of the study

1.3.1 To investigate the level of willingness to communicate in English among

employees in a banking institution in Bangkok.

1.3.2 To investigate the level of self-efficacy in English among employees in a

banking institution in Bangkok.

1.3.3 To investigate the relationship between willingness to communication

and self-efficacy in English among employees in a banking institution in Bangkok.

1.3.4 To find out the method for improvement which helps employees in

banking institutions in Bangkok to be more confident when communicating in

English.


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1.4 Research questions

1.4.1 What is the level of willingness to communicate in English among

employees in a banking institution in Bangkok?

1.4.2 What is the level of English self-efficacy among employees in a banking

institution in Bangkok?

1.4.3 What is the relationship between willingness to communication and self-

efficacy in English among employees in a banking institution in Bangkok?

1.4.4 What method improvement can help employees in banking institutions in

Bangkok to be more confident when communicating in English?

1.5 Scope and limitations of the study

Bank employees are usually assigned to work at the branches in order to serve

customers closely. Some bankers work in downtown areas, where the population of

foreigners is larger, while some are in suburban areas, resulting in dissimilar

opportunities to speak to foreigners. Considering the limitation about the area,

launching a research instrument to cover the whole population would be difficult.

Therefore, the scope of this study was narrowed down to Thai employees in American

Bank. The researcher selected employees in an American bank who usually work in

English context to be the subjects in this study because employees in American banks

have more opportunities to interact with foreigners compared to local bank

employees. This study also focuses on oral English communication because the

problem in the context entirely relates to oral communication.

1.6 Significance of the study

The purpose of this study was to explore the level of willingness to

communicate and self-efficacy level in English communication together with the

relationship between WTC and self-efficacy of employees in a banking institution in

Bangkok. The results of this study may fill a gap in the field of willingness to

communicate and self-efficacy, particularly in the context of Thai working adults.

Equally important, the findings may benefit other relevant parties, such as senior

management members in the bank or trainers in the bank, enabling them to better


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strategize training curriculums in order to minimize employees’ obstacles to speaking

English in the banking sector.

1.7 Definition of the terms

Willingness to communicate refers to the psychological readiness of

employees in a banking institution to initiate or avoid English communication when

the opportunity arises together with no condition.

Self-efficacy refers to bank employees’ beliefs regarding their perceived

competency to be involved in oral English communication and whether it influences

bankers’ behavior to initiate or avoid oral English communication.

Employee in banking institution refers to a person who is employed by an

American banking institution in Bangkok and works in the consumer banking section.

Consumer banking refers to banking business that provides services such as

savings and checking accounts, investment, mortgages, debit cards, ATM cards and

credit cards to individual consumers only.

English native speaking customer refers to a person of non-Thai nationality

who uses a service of an American bank and speaks English as the mother tongue.

Non-English native speaking customer refers to a person of non-Thai

nationality who uses a service of an American bank and speaks English as a second or

foreign language.

Foreign colleague refers to a non-Thai citizen who regularly uses English as a

medium in the communication and works together with the participants in an

American bank.

1.8 Organization of the study

The study of willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in English among

bank workers in Bangkok comprises five chapters.

Chapter 1 introduces the background and gives an overview of the statement

of the problem that led to this study. Moreover, this chapter states the major

components of this research including research questions, objectives of the study,

scope and limitations of the study, significance of the study, definition of the terms

and lastly, the organization of the study.


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Chapter 2 considers the principle of willingness to communicate and self-

efficacy in English, and likewise the previous works in the area of willingness to

communicate and self-efficacy are discussed.

Chapter 3 explains the context of the study and discusses the design of the

study together with research instrument. Furthermore, this chapter explains the

characteristics of the participants in this research study, the procedures, data

collection as well as the statistical analyses deployed in this study.

Chapter 4 reports the statistical results obtained from the survey. The data is

illustrated in the form of percentage, mean, standard deviation and correlation

statistics to describe the participants’ demographic data, as well as measure the levels

and relationships of the variables.

Chapter 5 concludes the results from the study and also discusses the results

by explaining, comparing them with previous work and theory. In addition, this

chapter contributes suggestions for future research.


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CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

The principles of willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in English are

reviewed in this chapter. The theoretical perspectives are also evaluated and

discussed.

2.1 Language proficiency

Language proficiency is considered to be more important since it benefits the

individual in terms of economics. It is related to culture adaptation and social class

migration, which may enhance economic status. Language proficiency has a positive

influence on the income rate of the individual (Tainer, 1988). Furthermore, people

who are proficient in multiple languages can gain more opportunities in several

aspects such as career, education, social status (Tubergen & Kalmijn, 2009).

Obviously, language proficiency has an influence in business contexts. It can be an

indicator of people’s success or failure in their occupation, so with this notion,

language proficiency should be considered as influencer in this study.

Language proficiency refers to an individual’s capability to utilize language in

the appropriate way depending on the particular situation; meanwhile, language

proficiency also has connection with linguistic knowledge, comprehension and usage

towards language skills, listening, speaking, reading and writing (Gottlieb, 2006). The

components of language proficiency comprise knowledge in language and the ability

to exercise both organizational competence and pragmatic competence (Bachman &

Clark, 1987).

2.2 Definition of willingness to communicate

English language is widely used as an international language currently.

Learning the English language has become a way to succeed or achieve great results

in communication at the international level, which leads learners to a higher status in

terms of social class. Dornyei & Shehan (2003), as cited in Alqahtani, state that

English is a globally perfect language and very useful in the current business setting

(Alqahtani, 2015). Because of this sense, many individuals also try to learn English


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language but not every English language learner can reach higher levels of English

language proficiency. Some people can speak English fluently while others face

difficulty in communicating in English though their start point is likely similar. This

circumstance can be explained by the Willingness to Communicate model (WTC).

One of the considerable notions of second language acquisition (SLA) and

communication is WTC (Peng, 2007). McCroskey and associates introduced the

principle of willingness to communicate in order to illustrate the picture of an

individual’s performance when communicating in the first language. Later on,

MacIntyre and associates also utilize the WTC concept to explain the communication

phenomena in a second language environment.

Figure 2.1 Heuristic model of variables influencing WTC

McIntyre and associates present the WTC model in form of a pyramid, which

indicates the vital precursors to L2 communication. The individual’s attributes,

namely, communication apprehension, perceived communication competence,

introversion-extraversion and self-esteem also have relationships to each other

according to the WTC concept. The communication apprehension and perceived

communication competence according to MacIntyre affect WTC. These elements are


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the result of traits such as shyness, self-belief and anomie. However, the individual’s

WTC is also changeable because there are variables that affect the degree of WTC.

In this sense, the variables refer to the conversation setting that have an effect

on the WTC of the individual, the topic and formality in the conversation, the number

of interlocutors or even their attitudes towards each other (MacIntyre, Dornyei,

Clement, & Noels, 1998). Apparently, the language learner needs to engage in

communication in order to obtain better language acquisition. The frequency of the

opportunity to interact in particular L2 settings and the improvement in language

proficiency are derived from the willingness to communicate (Robson, 2015).

Moreover, fear of speaking, low self-esteem and the degree of un-shyness or shyness

of the individual seem likely to be an influencing factor towards WTC (Baker &

MacIntyre, 2000 cited in Alqahtani, 2015). Nevertheless, shifting the language of

communication apparently can change the atmosphere when one reaches out to others,

so a deviation of WTC occurs. The WTC hierarchy in a second language categorizes

the variables into six layers including communication behavior, behavioral intention,

situational propensities, affective-cognitive context and, lastly, social and individual

contexts. The communication behavior is the outcome of the integration of other

variables and its outcome also results in the use of second language. The individual

who moves up through the components and gets to level I will take action in the L2

environment using L2 as usual (MacIntyre, 1998).

WTC explains the possibility of the individual’s involvement in the

communication when the opportunity to share information in L2 occurs (Richard

Clement, 2003). Anxiety in L2 communication alongside the perceived ability in L2

communication of each individual predicts the degree of WTC in L2 whereas the

degree of WTC also relates to the frequency of using L2 in communication. In

addition, trait-like personality, setting, motivation and attitude towards the other

speaker, and the communication capability of the individual impact WTC in L2

utilization (Tomoko Yashima, 2003). The nature of WTC is also flexible and the

degree of WTC is influenced by multiple variables including stable (trait-like) and

situational (state-like) component, which are derived from particular situations (Cao

and Philp, 2006 cited in Inigo Yanguas & Alayne Flores, 2014). Willingness or

unwillingness to communicate in L1 doesn’t apparently represent phenomena in L2.


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Furthermore, the variables in L2 WTC are more difficult to understand, compared to

the components of L1 WTC (MacIntyre, 1994 as cited in Mansoureh & Mona, 2016).

From the opinion of various scholars mentioned above, WTC is a vital element in L2

teaching that can apply to several English language users who recognize English

language as their L2. The WTC model explains the variables affecting the ability to

use English language in the communication of each individual show why some

individuals tend to be enthusiastic to use English language. Hence, it is suitable to

follow WTC theory to study the actual phenomena and level of WTC of individuals

outside the classroom in intercultural business contexts surrounded by English

language speakers.

2.3 Definition of self-efficacy

Self-efficacy is the belief in one’s ability to cope with issues that come into

one’s life. The self-efficacy of each individual is different. It depends on assumptions

towards some particular circumstance or element along the way to accomplishment.

People with high self-efficacy have a tendency to take on challenges because they

maintain a can-do attitude whereas lower self-efficacy usually leads people to

negative consequences. For example, when high efficacious students confront very

difficult questions during a mathematics examination, they will put more effort and be

more persistent to overcome the obstacle while the low efficacious students avoid it.

In general, self-efficacy is built up based on many components. Scholars in the

field of psychology have examined how different variables affect self-efficacy.

S elf-efficacy is derived from main four sources. Mastery experience also relates to

the success of an individual, which creates a strong belief in the individual’s personal

efficacy; on the other hand, failure decreases the degree of self-efficacy. Not only can

personal experience build up self-efficacy but it can also undermine the individual

depending on the success or failure and the expected result. The second source of self-

efficacy is vicarious experience. This is different from mastery experience. Vicarious

experience is indirect experience of the individual since it comes from seeing people

who share the same characteristics and consider their success or failure. Success or

failure of the model also impacts one’s self-efficacy based on how similar it is to the

individual. Social persuasion also strengthens one’s beliefs about their capability to


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achieve a task. If people are persuaded verbally that they have enough ability to

accomplish a task, they firmly utilize their capability in order to achieve the goal. A

sense of self-efficacy also is developed by encouragement from the other people as

well. Emotional and physical reaction is the last component that influences one’s

self efficacy. It is a state in which people exist in a particular moment. For example, if

people are stressed or sick, the confidence in their own capability becomes lesser

compared to when they have positive emotions or strong health (Bandura, 1994)

Self-efficacy has been defined as the perceived competence of an individual to control

the process in order to attain achievement (Bandura, 1997 as cited in Yerdelen,

McCaffrey, & Klassen, 2016). The quality of self-efficacy indicates how individuals

cope with a particular challenge or difficulty, This can refer to both the effort level

and persistence of an when dealing with difficulties along the way to achievement of a

targeted mission (Bandura, 1977). According to Bandura (Bandura, 1997 as cited in

Erozkan, Dogan, & Adiguzel, 2016), the ability to realize, foresee and deal with

situations, other people or even oneself is a noticeable quality of self-efficacy. People

maintain these abilities at somewhat different levels, so self-efficacy differs in one

individual from other.

The person who maintains high self-efficacy has a positive intention to put

more effort when dealing with a difficult job but the opposite one will be defeated by

the perceived mindset of fear, unhappiness and incompetence (Erozkan, Dogan, &

Adiguzel, 2016). Self-efficacy refers to a self-evaluation of one’s capability toward a

course of action which is required to overcome an obstacle in a particular

circumstance and people usually make predictions based on their assessment of self-

efficacy (Bandura, 1986 as cited in Saka, Bayram, & Kabapinar, 2016). People with

high self-efficacy can physically and mentally deal with difficult situations; on the

other hand, people with low self-efficacy make a lesser effort when encountering

challenging tasks (Gordon et al., 1998; Pajares,2002 as cited in Saka, Bayram, &

Kabapinar, 2016). In this sense, self-efficacy can roughly account for the

achievement level of people in several social contexts. Self-efficacy will lead people

to do or not do something. It not only reflects the decision making process, but also

affects behavior in a particular circumstance.


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2.4 Relevant studies in an international context

Tomoko Yashima, Zenuk-Nishide, and Kazuaki Shimizu (2004) conducted a

study with Japanese adolescent learners of English to investigate the antecedents of

the willingness to communication (WTC) in L2. The study found that the participants

with better WTC scores maintained communication with a host longer and more

frequently during a sojourn when compared to those with lower scores. Similarly,

participants who regularly initiated communication in classroom also had more WTC

in L2 discourse. For the antecedents of WTC, the perceived competence in

communication of the individual was related to WTC. Self-confidence in L2

communication of the interlocutor also affected WTC in L2.

Peng (2007) studied the willingness to communicate in an L2 and integrative

motivation among college students in an intensive English language program in

China. The study was conducted based on the belief that willingness to communicate

in a second language (L2 WTC) plays a crucial role in second language acquisition

and communication. Questionnaires were distributed to 174 medical college students

in order to measure L2 WTC of the participants. The study revealed that the

motivation played the major role in anticipating L2 WTC while integrativeness

predict L2 WTC to a lesser degree. On the other hand, attitude towards the learning

situation did not affect L2 WTC. Motivation was the key driver for success in L2

learning alongside competency in L2 communication. Therefore, motivation and

integrativeness were identified as predictors of L2 WTC.

Robson (2015) conducted qualitative research together with a quantitative

approach to elicit data from 23 high-proficiency Asian L2 English learners for nine

weeks during an academic preparation course at a university in England. It was

determined that with high level of WTC, a learner’s oral output including fluency,

accuracy and complexity was somewhat better. The study measured the change in the

utterances of subjects over a nine-week period. The data showed that the interlocutor

and familiarity of the topic in communication had a relationship to the performance of

the subjects in the study. This conclusion was supported by the study of Wolf (2013)

as cited in (Robson, 2015). The students exchanged ideas with the fellows in English

in mechanical and argumentative essays and had more interest in their own topics,

compared to topics taken from a textbook. Thereby, an increase in WTC is from self-


13

selection of the topic. Moreover, the research looked at the relationship between WTC

and learner’s attributions, which are fluency, accuracy, complexity and learner

engagement. The results indicated a positive correlation for some attributes, namely,

complexity and length of turn.

Nasiri, Suzani, Babamoradi, and Mohammadi (2016) studied the relationship

between willingness to communicate and decultuartion. This study concentrated on

cultural challenges, which are deculturation, together with willingness to

communicate. Two kinds of questionnaires were distributed to 50 female English

students of Radmehr English Language Center in Iran. The first type of material was a

Home Cultural Attachment Scale (HCAS) based on crucial variables including

religious, Iranian, Cultural, Artistic and Western Attachment; meanwhile, the rest was

also designed using the Willingness to Communicate concept. The result showed a

significant relationship between deculturation and WTC. The student who aimed to

communicate outside the class considered learning English as a self-benefit. On the

other hand, the willingness to communicate inside the class indicated a desire to show

superiority among fellow students.

Yerdelen, McCaffrey, and Klassen (2016) conducted a longitudinal study of

students’ anxiety and procrastination together with the relationship to self-efficacy for

self-regulation of these principles. The researchers used the Growth Curve Modeling

four times during the semester to analyze the 182 participants, who were

undergraduate students. The result showed an inverse correlation between

procrastination and academic anxiety. Procrastination increased over the semester but

academic anxiety went in the opposite direction. At the beginning, high level of

anxiety and procrastination had a relationship to low levels of self-efficacy for self-

regulation. Over the semester, the degree of procrastination increased but academic

anxiety also decreased. Students’ procrastination and anxiety were correlated at the

beginning of the semester. Moreover, at the initial measurement period, high levels of

anxiety and procrastination were significantly related to low levels of self-efficacy for

self-regulation, whereas the rate of change in anxiety and procrastination over time

were not predicted by students’ initial levels of self-efficacy for self-regulation.

Saka, Bayram, & Kabapinar (2016) examined the relationship between the

teaching practice of prospective science teachers and their self-efficacy in teaching.


14

The Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI) was used to measure 125

prospective science teachers’ self-efficacy level and determine the study unit. The

purposive sampling method was used in the research. There were three groups of self-

efficacy, i.e., highest, lowest, and average, and the study group comprised two from

each group. The researchers conducted this study with the qualitative approach using

observation, interviews and documents to collect data from the prospective science

teachers who were in the final year. The conclusions made from content analysis

revealed that the level of self-efficacy of the prospective teachers was different but

they also shared the same idea that a student-centric method was the best approach in

the teaching process. The result contrasted the prediction. The teachers with high

levels of self-efficacy didn’t exhibit a high teaching performance; meanwhile, low

self-efficacy teachers might get the content across better.

2.5 Relevant studies in a Thai context

Jongsermtrakoon (2009) sought to determine the level of affective variables,

namely, international posture, English learning motivation, and confidence in English

communication together with WTC in English, and the English communication

behaviours of Thai secondary school students. In addition, the researcher aimed to

investigate the model of English communication in Thai contexts as well as the

relationship between those affective variables, willingness to communicate and

English communication. Questionnaires were distributed to 438 secondary school

students in Bangkok accompanied by classroom observations and interviews. The

results demonstrated that the English learning motivation of the participants was at a

high level while other variables were classified at a moderate level. Regarding the

relationship between the five variables, WTC in English was correlated with English

communication behaviours at a moderate level while WTC in English and English

communication behaviours were correlated with affective variables at a low level.

From the observation, the frequency in English communication of high WTC students

was higher when compared to the low WTC students. Moreover, the data from

interview stated that the similar level of affective variables for both high and low

WTC students.


15

Anyadubalu (2010) studied 318 students at a secondary school in Bangkok.

The researcher investigated the participants’ perception of self-efficacy and anxiety in

English language. In addition, the study intended to explore the relationship among

those variables and the participants’ English ability. The statistical analysis

demonstrated a moderate negative relationship between anxiety and performance in

English language whereas there was no significant relationship between self-efficacy

and English language performance. The relationship between English language

anxiety and self-efficacy was moderate in a negative way. Interestingly, the results

revealed that self-efficacy and English language anxiety were influential predictors.

Therefore, the findings clearly indicated that the paramount predictors of English

language performance were English language anxiety and self-efficacy.

Sato (2011) conducted a study to find out the level of self-confident and

willingness to communicate focusing on English activities in the classroom and

compared the relationship between self-confidence and willingness to communicate

level. Data were derived from 65 students who studied in a Master of Arts program in

English for Careers at the Language Institute Thammasat University. The quantitative

method was used to demonstrate the level of self-confidence and willingness to

communicate of the participants. The resulted showed that the participants’ self-

confidence and willingness to communicate level in L2 were high when speaking with

a classmate or in a small group discussion with a simple topic. However, the degree of

self-confidence and willingness to communicate in L2 became lower if the situation

was more formal such as an academic discussion or a debate activity. In terms of the

relationship, self-confidence and willingness to communicate in L2 were strongly

correlated.

Boonsongsup (2012) aimed to examine whether demographic differences

affect willingness to communicate and communication apprehension in English.

Moreover, the researcher intended to find out the relationship between willingness to

communicate and communication apprehension in English among Thai employees. A

questionnaire was utilized to gather the data from 420 Thai employees in Bangkok

and then the data were analysed by descriptive, inferential and correlation statistics.

The investigation revealed that the personal attributes, namely, years of experience

and self-perceived English competence, influenced willingness to communicate and


16

communication apprehension. Age didn’t affect communication apprehension yet this

variable was correlated with willingness to communicate. According to the result, the

level of willingness to communicate of the subject was identified at a moderate level

if the communication took place among friends in both small and large groups; on the

other hand, participants’ WTC was reported at a low level when the interlocutors was

a stranger. Regarding communication apprehension scores, the average

communication apprehension score was moderate. The score was higher in

communication taking place in public contexts whereas the communication

apprehension score was lowest in a group context. Regarding the relationship between

willingness to communicate and communication apprehension, the study surprisingly

demonstrated that these variables had a negative relationship.

Simasangyaporn (2016) attempted to discover the level of self-efficacy and the

relationship between the participants’ self-efficacy and listening comprehension

performance in English among Thai undergraduate students. The study also examined

whether a program of listening strategy instruction could enhance their level of self-

efficacy and listening comprehension in English. The study was a quasi-experimental

mixed method and the participants were 161 Thai undergraduate EFL students in

Thailand. The findings revealed that the participants’ self-efficacy level was low and

the correlation statistics indicated a moderate but significant relationship between

self-efficacy and listening comprehension. Moreover, the comparison between the

intervention and comparison groups revealed that, after strategy instruction, the

improvement in self-efficacy of the intervention group was higher than that of the

comparison group but not to a significant level. However, the intervention group

improved their listening proficiency at a significantly higher level in comparison. The

study also provided qualitative evidence that the listening strategies of the

intervention group resulted in a better listening comprehension level whereas the

control group did not change much.


17

CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Design of the study

The purpose of this study was to measure the level of willingness to

communicate and self-efficacy and whether WTC and self-efficacy affect the English

oral communication of bank workers. The primary sources related to willingness to

communicate, self-efficacy and language proficiency were used to construct the

research instrument. The present study is quantitative cross-sectional study using a

questionnaire. According to the purpose of the study, the questionnaire was used to

gather the data from the participants while descriptive statistics were used to explain

the level of WTC and self-efficacy of the participants in order to answer the research

questions. Self-administered questionnaires were presented to 15 pilot participants.

The pilot participants’ comments led to adjustments to some questions to make them

more understandable.

3.2 Context of the study

Globalization in the banking business has caused peoples across the world to

interact with several purposes in this industry. For instance, business executives from

the United States may need to open bank accounts to facilitate financial transactions

while setting up new businesses in Thailand. Expatriates who work for multinational

companies usually prefer to hold credit cards to support living expenses while living

in Thailand. Furthermore, discussions in English with foreign colleague regularly

occur in foreign banks. The context of this study was an American bank located in

Bangkok where the employees of the bank certainly have a chance to use English in

communication during working hours in different forms and frequency. It depends on

the individual’s job responsibility. For example, the credit operation staff needs to

discuss with customers via telephone when processing credit card applications;

meanwhile, sales representative need to call back customers to explain product

benefits when the customer leaves a message on the website. Moreover, in this

American bank, all work-related documents are in English language while video


18

teleconference regularly uses English language as the medium to interact. The

abovementioned situations portray working context in the American bank. The study

aimed to investigate why some bankers initiate English language communication

while others avoid it.

3.3 Participants

The researcher used the purposive sampling method to select employees in an

American bank because their working context certainly relates to English language.

Therefore, the international setting in an American bank is a possible factor which

reflects English language issue compared to a local bank (Holmes, 2013). The

research instrument was distributed to the 151 participants face to face using the

convenience sampling method.

3.4 Procedure and research design

This study was survey research that intended to collect data regarding the

willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in English of the employees in an

American bank. The survey aimed to investigate the level WTC and self-efficacy in

English of the participants together with answering the research questions.

The quantitative method was employed to elicit the degree of WTC and self-efficacy

in English as well the relationship between WTC and self-efficacy in English.

Moreover, the participants’ idea was asked to find out the method improvement which

helps banker to be more confident when communicating in English. The instrument

was developed based on primary and secondary data. After that, the researcher

conducted a trial by randomly distributing the first draft of the questionnaire to 15

employees in the American bank in Bangkok. The data from the pilot study tested the

reliability of the questionnaire with Cronbach’s Alpha program. Any awkward

questions and ambiguous wordings were revised and clarified. After the pilot study,

the questionnaires were distributed to the subjects by the convenience sampling

method.


19

3.5 Research instrument

The instrument of this study was a self-administrated questionnaire. It was

divided into four sections. The queries in the first section solicited the personal

attributes of the participants. The next section in this instrument measured the

participants’ willingness to communicate in English. It contained statements

customized from the willingness to communication in a Foreign Language Scale

(WTC-FLS) to harmonize with the context of this study. The statements aimed to

determine the participants’ willingness to take part in English language interaction

under various components, namely, setting, context and interlocutor (Baghaei &

Dourakhshan, 2012). In section three, the questions were adapted from a

questionnaire of English self-efficacy (QESE) scale (Wang, Kim, Bong, & Ahn,

2013). A six-point Likert scale was used to determine how the participants assessed

their own WTC and self-efficacy in English. The indicators ere ranked from 1 to 6

where 1 referred to strongly disagree, 2 - Disagree, 3-Slightly disagree, 4- Slightly

agree, 5- Agree and 6-Strongly agree. Some statements from the original

questionnaire were deleted and revised in order to fit with context of this study. In

addition, the researcher added up open-ended questions to the end of section two and

section three to obtain more opinions about WTC and self-efficacy in English. Free

writing was required in this sub-question. The last section of this instrument was a

query about the method of improvement to help bank employees be more confident

when communicating in English. The researcher allowed free writing answers in this

section.

To examine reliability of the research instrument, the researcher conducted a

pilot study with 15 employees in the American bank whose characteristics were

similar to the population of this study. Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient was calculated

to test the reliability of the questionnaire and the results of the reliability test are

displayed in the below table.


20

Table 3.1 Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient of variables in the questionnaire (N=15)

Variable Cronbach’s Alpha

Willingness to communicate with English native

speaking customers

.905

Willingness to communicate with Non-English native

Speaking customers

.935

Willingness to communicate in English with foreign

colleagues

.937

English Self-Efficacy

.990

All items .985

3.5.1 Data collection

The researcher distributed the questionnaires in person in order to ask for their

consent beforehand. A total of 200 questionnaires with running numbers were

distributed to the voluntary subjects and the execution of data collection occurred

after business hours.

3.5.2 Data Analysis

Through SPSS version 23, descriptive statistics were used to determine the

data distribution and tendencies of English self-efficacy and WTC in English

language. The outcome from the SPSS program reflected results in the form of

percentage, mean, median and standard deviation.


21

In order to facilitate the interpretation of the mean scores of the feelings and

attitudes regarding willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in English, the

following criteria was used.

Mean score between 5.20 – 6.00 refers to Extremely high

Mean score between 4.36 – 5.19 refers to High

Mean score between 3.52 – 4.35 refers to Slightly higher than moderate

Mean score between 2.68 – 3.51 refers to Slightly lower than moderate

Mean score between 1.84 – 2.67 refers to Low

Mean score between 1.00 – 1.83 refers to Extremely low

As the data was not normally distributed, Spearman correlation was used to

determine the relationship between self-efficacy and willingness to communicate and

the significant results could answer the research questions. For the opinions and

suggestions from the participants, the researcher reorganized the handwritten answers

from open-ended questions into the groups based on frequency and similarity of the

opinions and explained and synthesized the answers to endorse the statistical report.


22

CHAPTER 4

RESULTS

This chapter presents the statistical report which fulfilled research questions

and portrayed the characteristics of the participants in this study. Descriptive statistics

were used to illustrate participants’ personal attributes and the data is reported in the

form of percentage, mean, median and standard deviation. Correlation statistics also

indicated the relationship between willingness to communicate and self-efficacy of

employees in an American bank while the handwritten answers to open-ended

questions were reorganized and disseminated in this chapter.

4.1 Personal attributes of the participants

The participants in this study were 151 employees in an American bank and

their personal attribute s was reported in form of percentage and frequency. There

were seven components reported in this section namely gender, age, educational level,

corporate title, years of employment, attendance in listening and speaking courses and

self-evaluation of oral English proficiency.

Table 4.1 shows the different portion of employment in the banking business

regarding gender. The majority of participants in this study were female (74.8%)

while 25.2% were male.

Table 4.1 Gender of the participants

Gender Frequency Percentage (%)

Female 113 74.8

Male 38 25.2

Total 151 100.0

The participants in this study were divided into three generations. The

majority, 53.0%, was 31-40 years old. Table 4.2 demonstrates that a minority was


23

27.1% and they were in the group of 41 years old and more. Lastly, a tiny minority

equaled 19.9% and they were 21-30 years old.

Table 4.2 Age of the participants

Age Frequency Percentage (%)

21-30 years 30 19.9

31-40 years 80 53.0

41 years and more 41 27.1

Total 151 100

As shown in Table 4.3, a large majority of the participants (84.1%) held

bachelor’s degrees, whereas only 15.9% of them had master’s degrees.

Table 4.3 Educational level of the participants

Educational level Frequency Percentage (%)

Bachelor’s degree 127 84.1

Master’s degree or higher 24 15.9

Total 151 100

Table 4.4 shows the combination of the participants’ employment position;

40.4% held the position of staff while the smaller groups were assistant manager and

manager or a higher position at 39.1% and 20.5%, respectively.


24

Table 4.4 Corporate title of the participants

Corporate title Frequency Percentage (%)

Staff 61 40.4

Assistant manager 59 39.1

Manager or higher 31 20.5

Total 151 100

Table 4.5 demonstrates the employment length of the participants in this

study. A total of 34.4% of the participants had worked in this bank for 11-15 years

and 31.1% had worked for 1-5 years; meanwhile, 20.5% of the participants had

worked for 6-10 years. Nevertheless, the employees had a length of employment at 16

years or longer were the smallest group (13.9%) in this study.

Table 4.5 Years of Employment of the participants

Years of employment Frequency Percentage (%)

1-5 years 47 31.1

6-10 years 31 20.5

11-15 years 52 34.4

16 years and above 21 13.9

Total 151 100

Table 4.6 shows percentage of attending in English listening and speaking

courses of the participants in this study. Employees in the American bank valued

English listening and speaking course since table 7 shows that 73.5% of participants

used to take English listening and speaking course whereas 26.5% of the participant

had never attended.


25

Table. 4.6 Attending English listening and speaking course of the participants

Attending Frequency Percentage (%)

Attended 111 73.5

Never attended 40 26.5

Total 151 100

Table 4.7 shows that 58.3% of the participants assessed their oral English

proficiency at a fair level. The participants who evaluated their oral English

proficiency at a good level were 23% while 15.2% stated their oral proficiency was at

a poor level. Only 3.3% possessed an excellent level.

Table 4.7 Self-evaluation towards oral English proficiency of the participants

Proficiency level Frequency Percentage (%)

Poor 23 15.2

Fair 88 58.3

Good 35 23.2

Excellent 5 3.3

Total 151 100

4.2 What is the level of willingness to communicate in English among employees

in a banking institution in Bangkok?

The information in table 4.8 answers the research question of whether

employees in an American bank possessed WTC in English with English native

speaking customers at a slightly higher than moderate level since the total mean score

was 4.20. With regard to the interpretation of mean scores in this study, a mean score

between 3.52 and 4.35 referred to slightly higher than moderate.


26

Table 4.8 Level of willingness to communicate in English with English native speaking

customers (N = 151)

Statement Mean Median SD Ranking Level of

WTC

5. If I meet English native speakers who are

facing problems at my workplace because

of not knowing Thai language, I take

advantage of this opportunity and I would

talk to them.

4.54

5.00

1.325

1

High

6. I am willing to help customers who are

English native speakers although it is not

within my responsibility.

4.44

5.00

1.263

2

High

7. I am willing to talk with a customer who

is an English native speaker.

4.38

5.00

1.320

3

High

8. If my colleague introduced me to a

customer who is an English native speaker,

I would like to test my abilities in

communicating with him/her in English.

4.30

5.00

1.254

4

Slightly

higher

than

moderate

4. If I meet English native speakers inside

my workplace, I hope there will be an

opportunity in which they would talk to

me.

4.14

5.00

1.410

5

Slightly

higher

than

moderate

(Continue)


27

Table 4.8 Level of willingness to communicate in English with English native speaking

customers (Continued)


WTC

3. If I meet English native speakers outside

my workplace, I hope there will be an

opportunity in which they would talk to

me.

4.03

4.00

1.376

6

Slightly

higher

than

moderate

2. If I meet English native speakers inside

my workplace, I would ask them the

questions and talk to them.

3.89

4.00

1.401

7 Slightly

higher

than

moderate

1. If I meet English native speakers outside

my workplace, I would ask them the


3.85

4.00

1.355

8 Slightly

higher

than

moderate

Total 4.20 4.38 1.112

Slightly

higher

than

moderate

For WTC in English with English native speaking customers, the employees in

an American bank possessed a high level of WTC in English in three kinds of

activities. They were willing to communicate in English when the customers were

facing problems at their workplace because of not knowing Thai language (item 5, ̅

= 4.54). The other activities were helping customers even if it was not their

responsibility (item 6, ̅ = 4.44) and talking in English with native speaking

customers in general (item 7, ̅ = 4.38).

On the other hand, the level of WTC in English of the participants was

reported as slightly higher than moderate in the five other activities. These activities

were testing the ability to communicate in English with a customer after introductions

occurred (item 8, ̅ = 4.30) and hoping for the opportunity to have interactions with

English native speakers inside the workplace (item 4, ̅ = 4.14). Finally, three lowest

ranked WTC levels were item 3, 2 and 1. The mean of item 3 ( ̅ = 4.03) indicated that

bank employees hope to communicate in English with English native speaking


28

customers outside the workplace. The circumstances that bank employees possessed

the lowest WTC level were item 7 and 8. Bank employees were willing to initiate a

conversation with English native speaking customers by asking questions inside the

workplace ( ̅ = 3.89) and outside the workplace ( ̅ = 3.85) at a slightly higher than

moderate level. Similarly, the average level of WTC in English with Non-English

native speaking customers was slightly higher than moderate since the statistical

outcome in table 4.9 shows the total mean score at 4.16.

Table 4.9 Level of willingness to communicate in English with Non-English native

speaking customers (N = 151)


WTC

13. If I meet Non-English native speakers

who are facing problems at my workplace

because of not knowing Thai language, I

take advantage of this opportunity and I

would talk to them.

4.46

5.00

1.295

1 High

14. I am willing to help customers who

are Non-English native speakers although

it is not within my responsibility.

4.40

5.00

1.302

2

High

15. I am willing to talk with a customer

who is Non-English native speakers.

4.35 5.00 1.333 3

Slightly

higher than

moderate

16. If my colleague introduced me to a

customer who is Non-English native-

speaker, I would like to test my abilities

in communicating with him/her in

English.

4.15 4.00 1.365 4

Slightly

higher than

moderate


inside my workplace, I hope there will be

an opportunity in which they would talk

to me.

4.09 4.00 1.411 5

Slightly

higher than

moderate


inside my workplace, I would ask them


4.04 4.00 1.336 6

Slightly

higher than

moderate

(Continue)


29

Table 4.9 Level of willingness to communicate in English with Non-English native

speaking customers (Continued)


WTC


outside my workplace, I hope there will

be an opportunity in which they would

talk to me.

3.93 4.00 1.357 7

Slightly

higher than

moderate


outside my workplace, I would ask them


3.87 4.00 1.353 8

Slightly

higher than

moderate

Total 4.16 4.25 1.166

Slightly

higher than

moderate

The first two items exhibited the highest mean when compared to the rest. The

means of these items were 4.46 and 4.40. The interpretation of mean scores implies

that bank employees’ WTC level regarding these events were high. They had high

level of WTC in English with Non-English native speaking customers who were

facing problems at the bank because of not knowing Thai language (item 13, ̅ = 4.46)

and they had WTC at high level in English so as to help customers even if it was not

their responsibility (item 14, ̅ = 4.40).

In addition, table 4.9 displays six items which the interpretation of mean

scores as “Slightly higher than moderate level”. The mean scores of these items

ranked from 4.35 to 3.87. Item 15 stated that the participants had a willingness at

slightly higher than moderate level to talk with a customer who is a Non-English

native speaker in general ( ̅ = 4.35). Item 16 ( ̅ = 4.15) reported that the participants

had WTC at a slightly higher than moderate level to test their ability in

communicating with Non-English native speaking customers as well as hoping for the

opportunity in which the customer would talk to them inside the workplace (item 9, ̅

= 4.09). From item 10 ( ̅ = 4.04), the participants had WTC at a slightly higher than

moderate level in regard to asking Non-English native speaking customers a question


30

and talking to them when meetings occurred inside the workplace. Item 11 ( ̅ = 3.93)

reported that if bank workers meet Non-English native speaking customer outside

their workplace, they possessed WTC at a slightly higher than moderate level in

regard to having an opportunity in which the customer would talk to them. Similarly,

item 12 showed mean at 3.87 for asking and talking with Non-Native English

speaking customers outside the workplace.

Likewise, table 4.10 answers the research question on the level of WTC in

English with foreign colleague being at a slightly higher than moderate level. The

total mean score of WTC in English with foreign colleagues was 4.10.

Table 4.10 Level of willingness to communicate in English with foreign colleagues (N = 151)

Statement Mean Median SD ranking Level of

WTC

19. I am willing to ask questions in

English to foreign colleagues at the

bank.

4.40 5.00 1.223 1

High

17. In order to practice my English, I am

willing to talk in English with my

foreign colleagues outside the bank.

4.29 5.00 1.309 2

Slightly

higher than

moderate

20. I am willing to talk and show my

opinions in English in the bank when all

my colleagues are listening to me.

4.24 4.00 1.274 3

Slightly

higher than

moderate

21. I am willing to have pair and group

activities in the bank so that I can talk in

English with my colleagues.

4.10 4.00 1.279 4

Slightly

higher than

moderate

23. In group work activities in the bank

when the group is composed of my

colleagues, I am willing to speak in

English.

4.09 4.00 1.368 5

Slightly

higher than

moderate

22. I am willing to give a presentation in

English in front of my colleagues.

4.01 4.00 1.390 6

Slightly

higher than

moderate

(Continue)


31

Table 4.10 Level of willingness to communicate in English with foreign colleagues

(Continued)


WTC

18. In order to practice my English, I am

willing to talk in English with my

manager outside the bank.

3.91 4.00 1.326 7

Slightly

higher than

moderate

24. In group work activities in the bank

when the group is NOT composed of my

colleagues, I am willing to speak in

English

3.76 4.00 1.355 8

Slightly

higher than

moderate

Total 4.10 4.13 1.107

Slightly

higher than

moderate

As reported in table 4.10, item 19 shows the mean score at 4.40. Based on the

interpretation of mean scores in this study, bank employees possessed WTC at a high

level when asking questions in English to foreign colleagues. However, the

participants in this study had WTC at a slightly higher than moderate level with

foreign colleagues in various circumstance. The remaining items showed mean scores

ranked from 4.29 to 3.76 and the mean score of WTC fell to lowest level when the

group activity was not composed of the participants’ direct colleagues (item 24, ̅ =

3.76).


32

4.3 What is the level of self-efficacy in English among employees in a banking

institution in Bangkok?

The researcher utilized descriptive statistics to measure the sense of efficacy in

English of bank employees through 25 statements. Statements described people’s

feelings regarding the capability to do an activity in English.

Table 4.11 Level of self-efficacy in English ( N = 151)

Statement Mean Median SD ranking Level of self-

efficacy

13. I can write e-mails in English.

4.55 5.00 1.204 1 High

20. I can read short English instructions

about my job.

4.54 5.00 1.171 2 High

14. I can understand English dialogues

about my job matters.

4.52 5.00 1.160 3 High

23. I can understand account numbers

spoken in English.

4.51 5.00 1.216 4 High

18. I can introduce myself to foreign

customers in English.

4.48 5.00 1.285 5 High

11. I can leave a note for my colleague

in English.

4.46 5.00 1.284 6 High

2. I can do my job by myself when

reading and writing English texts is

required.

4.45 5.00 1.269 7 High

(Continue)


33

Table 4.11 Level of self-efficacy in English ( Continued )


self-efficacy

6. I can write messages in English on

social media (Facebook, Twitter, or

Instagram).

4.44 5.00 1.203 8 High

7. I can give directions to the bank

from the place where I live in English.

4.40 5.00 1.271 9 High

8. I can write texts, such as approval

memos, business e-mails and job

manuals, in English.

4.40 5.00 1.184 10 High

12. I can guess the meaning of

unknown words when I am reading an

English text.

4.34 5.00 1.149 11

Slightly

higher than

moderate

22. I can read policy in English.

4.34 5.00 1.239 12

Slightly

higher than

moderate

15. I can understand messages or news

in English on the bank website.

4.33 5.00 1.248 13

Slightly

higher than

moderate

21. I can answer customers’ questions

in English.

4.33 5.00 1.300 14

Slightly

higher than

moderate

17. I can introduce my colleague (to

someone else) in English.

4.32 5.00 1.387 15

Slightly

higher than

moderate

3. I can do my job by myself when

listening and speaking English is

required.

4.31 5.00 1.245 16

Slightly

higher than

moderate

(Continue)


34

Table 4.11 Level of self-efficacy in English. ( Continued )


self-efficacy

10. I can understand recorded

conversations between bank staff and

customers in English.

4.30 5.00 1.274 17

Slightly

higher than

moderate

1. I can acquire and verify customers’

profiles stated in English.

4.29 5.00 1.309 18

Slightly

higher than

moderate

4. I can understand online training in

English.

4.29 5.00 1.225 19

Slightly

higher than

moderate

25. I can understand new reading

materials (such as news from Time

magazine, how to books, websites and

blogs).

4.28 5.00 1.234 20

Slightly

higher than

moderate

16. I can ask my manager questions in

English about job issues.

4.26 5.00 1.449 21

Slightly

higher than

moderate

24. I can write an essay about my job

achievements in English.

4.26 4.00 1.214 22

Slightly

higher than

moderate

9. I can explain a case study in English.

4.13 4.00 1.368 23

Slightly

higher than

moderate

19. I can discuss general interests with

my colleagues in English.

4.11 5.00 1.448 24

Slightly

higher than

moderate

5. I can describe banking products to

other people in English.

4.06 5.00 1.358 25

Slightly

higher than

moderate

Total 4.35 4.64 1.123

Slightly

higher than

moderate

As shown in Table 4.11, the statistical output demonstrates the results to

answer the research question on bank employees’ level of perceived self-efficacy in


35

English with a total mean score 4.35. This showed that the level of self-efficacy in

English was slightly higher than moderate. However, ten out of twenty-five items

were higher compared to the others in the questionnaire. The mean scores of these

activities ranged from 4.55 to 4.40 (Rank 1-10) and these intervals referred to high

levels of self-efficacy in English in the activities. The participants had a sense of self-

efficacy at a high level when writing e-mail in English (item 13, ̅ = 4.55), reading

short English instructions about their job (item 20, ̅ = 4.54) and understanding

English dialogues about their job (item 14, ̅ = 4.52).The other items with mean

scores at a high level of self-efficacy comprised item no. 23,18,11,2,6,7 and 8. Their

mean scores ranged from 4.51 to 4.40.

However, the larger proportion reported a lower level of self-efficacy in

English. A total of 15 activities out of 25 obtained weaker self-efficacy since their

mean score went down from 4.34 to 4.06. This rank of score meant that the

participants had a level of self-efficacy at slightly higher than moderate to exercise

control over the working environment where English language was used as a medium

in the communication. Table 12 displayed five activities with mean scores that

indicated the weakest sense of self-efficacy of the participants. The participants made

insufficient effort to ask a manager questions in English about job issues (item 16)

and write an essay about job achievements in English (item 24). The mean score of

these items equaled 4.26. Furthermore, the participants’ self-efficacy became weaker

when explaining a case study in English (item 9, ̅ = 4.13), discussing general interest

with colleagues in English (item 19, ̅ = 4.11) and describing banking product to

other people in English (item 5, ̅ = 4.06).

4.4 What is the relationship between willingness to communication and

self-efficacy in English among employees in a banking institution in

Bangkok?

Since the data obtained from the questionnaires were not normally distributed,

the Spearman correlation statistic was applied to investigate the association between

willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in English of the participants.


36

Table 4.12 Spearman Correlation between willingness to communicate and self-

efficacy in English of employees in a banking institution in Bangkok

Variables

Self-Efficacy in English

r Sig.

Willingness to communicate with English

native speaking customers .657** .000

Willingness to communicate with Non-English

native speaking customers .672** .000

Willingness to communicate in English with

foreign colleagues .776** .000

To answer the research question, willingness to communicate was divided into

three aspects. The first one was WTC in English with English native speaking

customers. The next was WTC in English with Non-English native speaking

customers and the last was WTC in English with foreign colleagues. The mean score

of these variables together with self-efficacy assessed whether they had association.

The result is presented in table 4.12. All aspects of WTC and self-efficacy in English

had a relationship at the significant level of .05. When evaluating each aspect, there

was a significant relationship between WTC in English with English native speaking

customers and self-efficacy, r = .657, p < .05. Similarly, WTC in English with Non-

English native speaking customer correlated with self-efficacy in English, r = .672

while WTC in English with foreign colleagues was also correlated with self-efficacy

in English, r = .776 (all ps < .05). The correlation between WTC and self-efficacy in

English leads to the inference that these variables each other at some level.


37

4.5 Open-ended questions

Beyond the statistical report, an open-ended question was also utilized.

4.5.1 When are you most comfortable to talk to someone in English?

The open-ended question was used to enhance the understanding about the

participants’ opinions regarding willingness to communicate. The open-ended

question in section 2 of the research instrument invited the respondents to reveal the

affairs in which English conversation was comfortably actualized. The total number

of respondents in this study was 151 bank workers and, impressively, 69 people

responded to this question. The answers were classified and there were five categories

as a result of this execution. A total of 25 respondents reported that they were

comfortable to communicate anytime and anywhere with everyone. They loved

English and searched for opportunities to speak English because they wanted to

practice as well. Interestingly, the readiness to communicate in English was evident in

personal life. A total of 21 answers indicated that the respondents were comfortable to

talk to an interlocutor in English when falling in love, travelling, getting drunk at a

party and gossiping with a close friend. Unexpectedly, only nine persons articulated

that they were comfortable to talk to others in English in the workplace, while eight

bank workers preferred to speak English if they were approached and their mistakes

wasn’t a focus.

In summary, descriptive statistics contributed to the understanding towards the

level of willingness to communicate in English among bank workers in Bangkok.

There were three subsections used to identify the level of WTC among bank workers

in Bangkok. The first subsection was WTC with English native speaking customers.

The total mean score of this section was 4.20. The second subsection was WTC with

Non-English native speaking customers; the total mean score of this section was 4.16.

Lastly, WTC with foreign colleagues had a total mean score at 4.10. The

interpretation of these mean scores was “Slightly higher than moderate”. Meanwhile,

the answers to the open-ended question portrayed a circumstance where the

participants were most comfortable to make the utterances in English; 36.2% was

willing to make a conversation in English without conditions and 30.4% had a

willingness to speak English if the interaction was personal-related or informal.


38

4.5.2 In terms of listening and speaking, what kind of activity do you

think you can do well?

Self-efficacy refers to the beliefs of people about their perceived competency

to take control or accomplish a difficult task. Using English as foreign language might

not be very easy for many people. The hypothetical value from the statistical report

can paint the overall picture of self-efficacy in this study. The open-ended was applied

to obtain more details of self-efficacy in terms of listening and speaking. When the

subjects were asked about the activity that they perform well in terms of listening and

speaking, the response rate was 46.3%. A total of 70 respondents out of 151 supplied

answers to this section. Unexpectedly, 46 respondents indicated that they perform

well in listening (20 responses), speaking (10 responses) and both (16 responses) but

they didn’t specify the actual activity. Although the answers from this group of people

were short, it signalled that their sense of self-efficacy in listening and speaking

English was strongly established in various activities. The respondents needed more

effort to evaluate the degree of achievement in each activity, so they might have been

reluctant to report the specific activity they can do best. However, 16 answerers

clearly stated their best activity in terms of listening and speaking. The participants

had a strong sense of self-efficacy at some level when they experienced success in a

personal-related activity. Listening to the music, watching a movie or TV series and

chatting with close friends were reported as the activities they do well. Five people

were able to perform well in formal business settings, namely, speaking with

customers and colleagues, business presentations and being a speaker in training

sessions. Lack of capability in listening and speaking English was reported by a few

persons.

4.5.3 What can help bank employees to be more confident when

communicating in English?

Since this study aimed to find out the method which helps bank employees to

be more confident when communicating in English, the various ideas from the

respondents filled up this question.45% of the participants provided the idea about the

method which helps them to be more confident.

Bank employees disclosed four strategies that they approached if they wanted

to improve confidence to communicate in English. 22 persons valued a training

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Willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in English among employees in a banking ...ethesisarchive.library.tu.ac.th/thesis/2016/TU_2016... · 2018. 7. 5. · SELF -EFFICACY IN