Abstract/Summary

In the transnational education (TNE) context, academic writing plays an important role in postgraduate students’ academic success. While previous research has investigated and emphasised the importance of second language (L2) writing motivation, studies related to academic writing motivation in the TNE context, especially with a vision intervention programme for postgraduate students, seem lacking. The present research aims to explore how TNE students’ academic writing motivation and writing self-efficacy change over the 12 months of their master’s programme, and whether a vision intervention programme makes a difference. A two-stage longitudinal design was adopted, consisting of a Naturalistic Stage for baseline data collection on participants’ vision and motivation and an Intervention Stage involving a six-step vision intervention programme. The study involved 26 students from a joint MA programme between the UK and China. Both quantitative data from survey questionnaires and qualitative data from interviews and samples of students’ written assignments and dissertations were collected at different stages of the study. The findings of the study revealed that the vision, motivation, and self-efficacy of the TNE students changed during their joint MA programme, influenced by visionary intervention. Quantitative analysis did not show statistically significant changes, but the qualitative data provided more insights and indicated a positive impact on students' vision. Peer role models and teacher feedback emerged as distinctive themes in student vision, motivation, and second language writing efficacy. Positive supervisor support and feedback were linked to higher motivation and better writing outcomes, while lower self-efficacy was associated with negative emotions and difficulties in dissertation writing. Overall, the study highlighted the importance of fostering a supportive academic environment and the interrelated nature of vision, motivation, self-efficacy, and academic writing performance among TNE students.