Enhancing L2 Confidence Through Learning Diaries: A Replication Study on Italian Lower-Secondary School Students

Drawing on the literature on self-confidence, motivational theories, and positive psychology in the field of language learning, the present paper aspires to contribute to the literature by discussing some key findings of a recent conceptual replication study. In the original study, Shelton-Strong and Mynard (2018, 2021) investigated the benefits of keeping a diary for university language students’ motivation and L2 confidence. The replication study by Spricigo (2023) aimed to confirm original findings within a different educational context. For this purpose, the research design underwent some necessary modifications justified by the need to investigate the efficacy of using diaries among Italian younger students (13-14 years old) and the applicability of the teaching intervention in a lower-school context. After briefly presenting the two studies, this article will discuss the main findings, with a special focus on the issue of integrating the diary into the lower-secondary school curriculum.