How perceived teacher support boosts learning engagement: The chain mediating roles of second language grit and foreign language enjoyment

In the EFL context, learning engagement, as a crucial factor for students' academic achievement and future development, has garnered sustained scholarly attention. Although perceived teacher support is widely recognized as a key external predictor, the internal psychological mechanisms through which it affects learning engagement remain underexplored. Therefore, based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework, this study explores the effects of perceived teacher support on learning engagement, with a focus on the mediating roles of second language (L2) grit and foreign language (FL) enjoyment. Using survey data from 489 EFL students at two Chinese colleges, the study applied Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) for analysis. Results indicated that perceived teacher support directly and positively predicted learning engagement, L2 grit, and FL enjoyment. Moreover, L2 grit and FL enjoyment played both independent and chain mediating roles between perceived teacher support and learning engagement. The findings not only offer a theoretical framework that explains a motivational-affective pathway through which perceived teacher support affects learning engagement, but also provide practical implications for designing targeted supportive teaching interventions.