Author :

Reza Biria, Ali Bahadoran Baghbaderani

Abstract :

The present study aimed at exploring the interplay between EFL students, risk-taking propensity level and their gender differences to discover how it impacts the quality of their performances on multiple-choice tests. To this end, a sample of 120 male and female students were randomly selected from an initial population of 250 senior EFL students studying translation at Islamic Azad University of Isfahan (Khorasgan). All targeted participants were homogeneous in that they had all passed the same requirements and credit units. Based on the responses provided by the targeted sample to a modified version of Skaar's [21] Adolescent Exploratory and Risk Behavior Rating Scale (AERRS), they were divided into two groups with different risk-taking propensity levels; i.e., strong and weak. After a period of two weeks, a TOFEL paper-based test (PBT) was administered to the respondents. The results revealed that the number of items on multiple-choice test unanswered by the females was higher than those by the males. Interestingly, the findings may have important implications for teachers and test developers concerning test-takers gender differences and their willingness to guess.

Keywords :

risk-taking propensity level, multiple-choice test, EFL students, gender, test performance