The Development and Validation of a Scale on English for Research Publication Purposes (ERPP) in EAP Context

The present research aimed to conceptualize the construct of ERPP by designing and validating a questionnaire in the Iranian EAP (English for Academic Purposes) context. In so doing, a tentative scale with 60 items was piloted on 100 experienced Iranian EAP teachers. The results of the analyses, using Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (EFA, CFA), led to the discovery of 37 items on a five-point Likert scale. Moreover, the results revealed that the construct of ERPP has 12 factors including “grammatical errors”, “proofreading”, “the quality of the English writing”, “supporting non-native English writers”, “sounding like a native English writer”, “the importance of the editors and reviewers to be native English speakers”, “advantages of using English as a professional language”, “English grammar and vocabulary”, “English genres and discourse”, “English research article structure and style”, “English journal submission and revision processes”, and “time requirements for article writing and revision”. Likewise, the convergent validity and reliability of the instrument to measure the construct of concern was statistically confirmed (CR>0.7; p>.05). The findings have various implications for ERPP teachers, teacher trainers, course designers, and language researchers by raising their awareness of ERPP and its underlying components. In particular, EAP instructors can employ various resources to promote the students’ awareness of how to get their papers published. Likewise, by taking part in ERPP courses and becoming familiar with the publishing practices and criteria, the students can enhance their academic authorship skills.