Exposing the Dynamic Nature and Potential Role of Student Attribution Processes on English for Academic Purposes Achievement in Higher Education

The aim of this study is to investigate the reasons that English for Academic Purposes (EAP) students in the Open Access College at the University of Southern Queensland give to explain their success in a course of study. It will examine how students' internal and external attributions change while studying EAP. The data has been gathered through a survey administered four times to EAP students. The students come from English as an Additional Language (EAL) backgrounds and intend to undertake tertiary study in English at USQ. The data foregrounds the potential role of adaptive and maladaptive attribution processes in the EAP learning experience, showing that the majority of students possess a mixture of internal and external attributions that evolve over a course of EAP study. The implications of this study are the potential to contribute to the development of more holistic approaches in EAP programs.