The Influence of English Usage on Facebook and Personality Traits on Learning Achievement

Abstract

Facebook’s rising popularity has inspired academics and teachers to investigate its potential as a setting for learning in diverse subject areas. Personality traits are crucial for foreign language learning. This small-scale quantitative study aimed to determine the possible effects of Cambodian university students’ Big Five personality traits and English usage on Facebook on their English achievement referring to the scores the participants attained through English macro skills (speaking, writing, listening, and reading). The samples were 41 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) juniors at a private university. The sole research instrument was a questionnaire, classified into two sections. The first was the adopted English Usage on Facebook Inventory for Language Learning developed by Kao and Craigie (2014), and the second was the Big Five Inventory (John & Srivastava, 1999). The findings revealed that English usage on Facebook was positively associated with only two personality traits: agreeableness and openness. However, the variables, including the five kinds of personality traits and Facebook usage of English, did not significantly predict English achievement.