Artificial intelligence acceptance and procrastination: metacognitive listening awareness mediation in foreign language students

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of metacognitive listening awareness in the relationship between artificial intelligence (AI) acceptance and academic procrastination among university students learning foreign languages, specifically examining whether metacognitive processes explain how AI acceptance influences procrastination behaviors. A sample of 646 undergraduate students (378 males, 268 females; M age=20.49 years, SD=1.01) from Al-Azhar University, Egypt, completed the AI acceptance scale, metacognitive awareness listening questionnaire (MALQ), and academic procrastination scale during the second semester of the 2024/2025 academic year. Mediation analysis using Hayes’ PROCESS macro with 5,000 bootstrap resamples revealed that AI acceptance negatively predicted academic procrastination (β=-.196, p<.001), with metacognitive listening awareness serving as a significant partial mediator, accounting for 14.98% of the total effect. This study represents the first empirical examination of metacognitive listening awareness as a mediating mechanism in the relationship between AI acceptance and procrastination, addressing a critical gap in technology-enhanced language learning research. Educators should implement AI literacy modules within language courses that explicitly teach students to monitor their comprehension strategies while using AI tools, coupling technology training with reflective listening tasks that develop metacognitive awareness. Future research should employ longitudinal designs and examine additional mediators including self-efficacy, intrinsic motivation, and effort regulation.