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Abstract
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Reading proficiency is a cornerstone of academic success in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts, particularly at the university level where learners must process discipline-specific texts in English (Grabe & Stoller, 2002; Grabe & Yamashita, 2022). However, many EFL learners in Middle Eastern contexts demonstrate inadequate reading ability despite years of instruction (Al-Qahtani, 2016). Research increasingly attributes this problem not only to linguistic deficits but also to affective and motivational factors influencing engagement with reading tasks (Guthrie & Wigfield, 2000; Schiefele et al., 2012). Reading motivation—defined as the set of beliefs, values, and goals that drive reading engagement (Guthrie & Wigfield, 1999)—has consistently been shown to predict reading amount, strategy use, and comprehension outcomes in both first- and second-language contexts (Baker & Wigfield, 1999; Taboada et al., 2009; Lin et al., 2012). In EFL settings, motivated learners read more frequently and strategically, which enhances reading proficiency (Han, 2021; Li & Gan, 2022). Nevertheless, empirical findings suggest that the motivation–achievement relationship is complex and mediated by cognitive and affective processes (Hamedi et al., 2020; Ghaith & El-Sanyoura, 2019).
One key yet underexplored mediator is emotion regulation—the processes through which individuals monitor and modify emotional responses (Gross, 1998, 2015). In language learning, emotions such as anxiety, enjoyment, and boredom significantly influence performance (Dewaele & Li, 2020; Plonsky et al., 2022). Effective emotion regulation strategies enable learners to sustain motivation and engagement under difficulty (Heydarnejad et al., 2022; Liang & Mao, 2025). Conversely, maladaptive regulation may undermine motivation and reading achievement. Although prior studies have examined reading motivation and comprehension (Maghsoudi et al., 2021; Jannah et al., 2022), and others have explored emotions in lang
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