Some Japanese students know a lot of English but do not speak in class. Why? Researchers study 'willingness to communicate', or WTC. It means how ready you are to start talking.

Tomoko Yashima, a researcher in Japan, found that WTC does not depend only on English ability. Confidence in speaking and interest in the world are also important. Students who wanted to connect with the world were more ready to talk.

In 1998, MacIntyre and his colleagues described willingness to communicate, or WTC, as a pyramid. At the top is actually speaking, and just below it is the willingness to speak at that moment. Under that are confidence, the desire to talk with someone, personality and past experience. English ability is only one part of the base.

In 2002, Tomoko Yashima studied 297 Japanese university students. She introduced the idea of 'international posture', an interest in foreign countries and in people from other cultures. International posture increased motivation, which led to confidence in speaking English, and this confidence raised WTC. So feeling ready matters as much as knowing English.

Why do many Japanese learners who know a good deal of English remain silent when given the chance to speak? Research on willingness to communicate (WTC) offers an answer. In 1998, MacIntyre and colleagues modeled second language communication as a pyramid in which actual speaking sits at the top, supported by the momentary willingness to speak, which in turn rests on situational confidence, the desire to interact with a particular person, motivation, personality and experience.

Linguistic competence is only part of the foundation. Applying this framework to 297 Japanese university students, Yashima introduced the concept of international posture: interest in foreign affairs and international work, and a readiness to engage with people from other cultures. International posture enhanced motivation, which was linked to proficiency and to confidence in communicating, and this confidence raised WTC; international posture also influenced WTC directly.

A 2004 study with high school students found that higher WTC was associated with more frequent communication, including among 60 students studying in the United States. A later meta-analysis identified perceived competence, anxiety and motivation as three well-supported correlates of WTC. However, most of these findings rest on cross-sectional data, so the causal direction depends partly on theoretical assumptions.