COGNITIVE TASK COMPLEXITY, EMOTION AND L2 PERFORMANCE IN ENGLISH: A STUDY FROM TMTBLT PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of cognitive task complexity and task sequencing in Technology-Mediated Task-Based Language Teaching (TMTBLT) on learners' emotions, specifically foreign language fear (FLF) and foreign language enjoyment (FLE), and their subsequent influence on L2 English speaking performance. Sixty Chinese undergraduate students participated in three computer-mediated oral reporting tasks of varying complexity levels (low, medium, and high), arranged in counter-balanced sequences. Spoken performance was evaluatedusing complexity, accuracy, lexical complexity, and fluency (CALF) measures. Additionally, participants' emotional responses were assessed immediately after task completion. Results identified an optimal complexity zone, wherein medium complexity tasks produced the highest lexical diversity and syntactic complexity. Conversely, high-complexity tasks negatively impacted fluency and increased levels of FLF. Furthermore, a task sequence progressing from simple to complex, consistent with Robinson's SSARC model, was more effective in preserving accuracy and fluency compared to reverse or mixed sequencing. Positive correlations were observed between FLE and both lexical and syntactic complexity, whereas FLF negatively correlated with fluency. These findings empirically distinguish FLF from traditional anxiety constructs in language learning contexts. Overall, this research refines the Cognition Hypothesis, underscores the pedagogical importance of sequencing tasks from simple to complex, and emphasizes the necessity of designing technology-mediated tasks that account for emotional factors in digital language education.

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