Abstract

This study examines how emotional intelligence (EI), willingness to communicate (WTC), and adaptive communication behavior (ACB) are collectively associated with socio-emotional communicative competence (SECC) among Saudi university learners enrolled in fully online English courses via the Blackboard Learning Management System. Grounded in socio-affective and communicative-competence frameworks, the research employed a convergent mixed-methods design integrating quantitative survey data and qualitative reflections from 354 first-year non-English-major students. Results revealed that SECC operates as a multidimensional construct encompassing affective, motivational, and strategic dimensions. Learners with higher EI exhibited greater WTC and more consistent use of ACB, suggesting that emotional regulation is associated with sustained communicative engagement. Although ACB contributed modestly in regression models, qualitative data emphasized its pedagogical importance for maintaining interaction and negotiating meaning. Disciplinary differences emerged, with medical and laboratory sciences students exhibiting higher EI than their peers in pure sciences or computer sciences and programming—likely due to the use of English for collaboration and the emphasis on empathy-based teamwork. Extramural English was associated with greater socio-emotional engagement, indicating that informal practice complements online instruction. These findings underscore the pedagogical necessity of integrating emotional, motivational, and strategic training into EFL curricula. Embedding socio-emotional learning within Blackboard-mediated instruction aligns with Saudi Vision 2030 educational goals by cultivating emotionally intelligent, communicatively confident, and globally competent graduates.

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