FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO STAFF’S READINESS TO COMMUNICATE IN ENGLISH AND THEIR PERCEPTIONS TOWARDS THE IMPORTANCE OF ENGLISH AT THE WORKPLACE

Abstract

:This study aims to investigate the possible factor(s) that might be the contributor(s) to the staff’s
readiness to communicate in English along with their perceptions towards the importance of English as a means of
communication at the workplace. This study applied the quantitative method where the adapted questionnaire survey
was distributed to 102 participants of USAS administrative staff from various departments. The data gathered were
analysed using SPSS to extract the mean scores and the correlation coefficient values. The findings revealed that
among the three possible factors (psychological, environmental and proficiency), the psychological factor was the most
significant contributor that affected the staff’s readiness to communicate in English at their workplace (3.02). Despite
that, the staff's optimistic impressions reflected their desire to participate in English lessons to improve their
proficiency. Overall, their perceptions towards the importance of English as a means of communication are displayed
by the 86.3% agreement that English is important in their job scope. Meanwhile, a majority of 51% agreed that they
need to improve on all four basic skills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking).