Formative Feedback, Writing Self-Efficacy, and Perceived Writing Competence Among EFL University Students in Kosovo: An Associative Cross-Sectional Study

Background. Research on EFL writing has widely examined formative feedback and writing self-efficacy, but fewer studies have integrated feedback quality, task-specific writing self-efficacy, and perceived writing competence within a single empirical model. The unresolved problem is whether students’ confidence in performing academic writing tasks functions as an intermediary mechanism through which feedback perceptions are associated with competence self-evaluations, particularly in underrepresented higher education contexts where formative assessment practices are still developing. Purpose. This study clarifies whether writing self-efficacy operates as a linking construct between formative feedback and perceived writing competence among EFL university students in Kosovo. In doing so, it aims to extend social-cognitive explanations of academic writing by showing how an instructional condition may be connected to students’ self-evaluative judgments through writing-related capability beliefs. Method. Self-report data were collected from 400 students enrolled in English-medium academic writing courses at four higher education institutions in Kosovo. The measurement model was examined through confirmatory factor analysis, and the hypothesized relationships were tested through observed-variable path analysis. Because the study was cross-sectional and based on self-report data, all findings are interpreted as associative rather than causal. Results. The hypothesized pattern was supported. Formative feedback was positively associated with writing self-efficacy (β = 0.39) and perceived writing competence (β = 0.30), while writing self-efficacy was positively associated with perceived writing competence (β = 0.37). The indirect association through writing self-efficacy was significant (β = 0.15), indicating partial statistical mediation. Substantively, students who perceived feedback as clearer and more usable also tended to report stronger writing confidence, which in turn was linked to more positive competence evaluations. Conclusion. The study contributes by testing an integrated model of feedback, self-efficacy, and perceived writing competence in an underrepresented Balkan EFL higher education context. It positions writing self-efficacy as an intermediary construct that helps explain why formative feedback is associated with students’ competence self-evaluations. The findings support the broader applicability of Social Cognitive Theory to EFL writing while also highlighting the need for cross-cultural research that compares how feedback traditions and student engagement shape this model across educational systems.