A CORRELATIONAL STUDY OF EFL LEARNERS` ‘AMBIGUITY TOLERANCE’ AND ‘ACCULTURATION’ IN RECEPTIVE SKILLS

Due to the detrimental effects of foreign language ambiguity on multiple areas of language achievement, a large body of research has been devoted to examining the sources of ambiguity intolerance. Yet very few have considered acculturation and proficiency level of learners as causal factors in foreign language Ambiguity Tolerance. This enquiry proposes hypothesized links between foreign language ambiguity tolerance, three components of Schumann`s (1978, 1986) acculturation theories (assimilation, preservation, and adaptation), and selected cognitive variable proficiency level as (high, mid, low) in the Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) context. A set-wise regression analysis revealed the two variables that contributed significantly to the prediction of foreign language ambiguity tolerance: preservation, and English language proficiency. The pedagogical implications of these findings for reducing FL ambiguity intolerance and for improving foreign language learning and acculturation are discussed. An important finding indicates that learners` inclination to resist the TL culture can lead to increased levels of ambiguity intolerance. Hence , strategies need to be devised and implemented to allow learners to develop stronger security about their roots and simultaneously reaching out to global world where multilingual and multicultural societies are the norm.