Validating the multi-dimensional structure of self-efficacy beliefs in peer feedback for L2 writing: A bifactor-exploratory structural equation modeling approach

Abstract

The present study aims to validate a new scale, i.e., self-efficacy beliefs in peer feedback (SEBPF), using an advanced method of bifactor ESEM. Informed by sociocognitive theory and self-regulated learning, the SEBPF was designed to measure five distinct factors: self-incentives for peer feedback, perceived use of peer feedback, confidence in peer feedback, managing stress in peer feedback, and setting proximal goals for peer feedback. The items for the SEBPF scale were developed by extracting relevant themes from published studies and conducting interviews with a sample of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) student writers in China. This paper provides a comprehensive account of the developing and validating process of the SEBPF scale. Comparisons of confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory factor analysis support the criterion-related validity of a coherent 5-factor structure comprising 22 items, indicating the reliability and multifaceted nature of the SEBPF scale. The findings demonstrate the robustness and practical applicability of the SEBPF scale in assessing EFL writers’ self-efficacy beliefs associated with peer feedback, as well as its predictive effects on different sub-scores of writing performance. This paper is an empirical application of validating a new scale through bifactor ESEM. Implications were proposed based on the findings.