Hospitality Students’ English-Speaking Motivation and Self-Efficacy: A Gender Based Analysis

Abstract

English-speaking competence remains a significant challenge for hospitality students in Indonesia because effective oral communication is essential for academic learning and future professional practice. Therefore, this study aimed to examine gender differences in English-speaking motivation, investigate gender differences in English-speaking self-efficacy, and determine the nature and strength of the relationship between these two psychological constructs among hospitality students. A comparative-correlational quantitative research design was employed involving 124 hospitality students at Kaniva International College selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected using structured questionnaires with established validity and reliability. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Kolmogorov–Smirnov normality test, the Mann–Whitney U test, and Spearman’s rank-order correlation. The findings revealed a statistically significant gender difference in English-speaking motivation, with male students reporting higher motivation than female students (U = 1499.000, p = .031, r = .19), although the effect size was small. In contrast, no statistically significant gender difference was identified in English-speaking self-efficacy (U = 1566.500, p = .072, r = .16), indicating comparable levels of confidence between male and female students. Correlation analysis further demonstrated statistically significant positive relationships between English-speaking motivation and self-efficacy among both male students (ρ = .691, p < .001) and female students (ρ = .536, p < .001), suggesting that students with stronger English-speaking motivation also tended to report higher English-speaking self-efficacy across both gender groups. These findings contribute to the growing literature on English for Specific Purposes (ESP) by demonstrating that gender differences were evident in English-speaking motivation but not in self-efficacy within hospitality education. The study also highlights the close association between motivation and self-efficacy as complementary psychological factors supporting students' English-speaking development. The findings suggest that hospitality English instruction should continue providing communication-oriented learning experiences that strengthen students' motivation while maintaining equitable opportunities for developing English-speaking self-efficacy