Unpacking the relationship between L2 grit profiles and foreign language engagement among Chinese university students

This study examines the relationship between L2 grit components, namely, perseverance of effort (PE) and consistency of interest (CI), and foreign language (FL) engagement components (i.e., emotional engagement, behavioral engagement, cognitive engagement, and agentic engagement) using a person-centered approach with a sample of 400 Chinese university students. Results showed that female students reported higher behavioral and emotional engagement, while no gender differences were found in PE or CI. Moreover, PE was more strongly associated with FL engagement than CI. In addition, PE was more related to behavioral engagement than CI, while CI was more related to emotional engagement than PE. Latent profile analysis revealed four L2 grit profiles: high-all, average-all, low-all, and low PE and high CI. Learners in the high-all profile showed the highest FL engagement, while those with low PE and high CI had similar low FL engagement levels to the low-all group. These findings highlight the nonlinear nature of the grit-engagement relationship and emphasize the importance of PE in exam-driven contexts. Pedagogically, the study suggests that developing tailored interventions based on specific L2 grit profiles could improve learner engagement in FL classrooms.