THE CORRELATION BETWEEN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS’ PERSONALITY AND MASTERY OF WRITING SKILLS

This study seeks to examine whether university students’ personalities and writing skills are correlated. This study used correlational research as its methodology. The researchers examined two variables, university students’ personality and writing skills, to establish a statistical correlation between them. This study’s respondent sample consists of 38 students majoring in English education. This study was conducted in the English Education Department of Universitas Tidar’s Faculty of Teacher Training and Education. Using an International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) questionnaire makes it simple to ascertain the personality scores of each respondent, regardless of whether they are high-extroversion or low-extroversion learners. In addition, the participants’ writing skills were shown by their mid-semester essay writing course test scores. Quantitative data exists for both extroversion and writing scores. Therefore, Pearson product-moment and SPSS were used to analyze the data. Based on the results of this study, the researchers conclude that there is only a weak correlation between university students’ personalities and their mastery of writing skills. Because the findings of this study contrast with those of other studies, it is hoped that further research will be conducted to provide a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding.


INTRODUCTION
Four skills should be mastered in learning English, such as listening, speaking, writing, and reading.Among these skills, writing is one of the most important.According to Said (2018), writing is a crucial skill for the acquisition of the English language because vocabulary and grammar can be enhanced through effective writing.Writing is not only an important component of learning in the classroom, but students also seek to apply their writing skills to their academic and personal lives.In addition, it is emphasized that writing plays a crucial role in the production of global knowledge-mediating languages (Fareed et al., 2016).Through writing, students learn everything and can freely express their thoughts and feelings to others.If learners cannot verbally communicate their perspective, belief, or emotion, they can do it in writing.Learners can improve their written expression of their thoughts, opinions, and emotions and revise their work before it is read by others.Then, writing enhances their learning and understanding (Kafryawan, 2020).It encourages conversation and makes room for contemplation.According to Baron & Byrne (1987), writing is the formation or production of visual symbols on the surface of a flat object.Writing in the upper class, such as among university students, involves more than the random arrangement of graphic symbols.It should adhere to a specific pattern for forming words and sentences, arranging them in a particular sequence, and connecting them.
Students find it challenging to write in English since it demands much practice, a wide vocabulary, and perfect grammar.It also requires focus, intelligence, and perseverance (Dhanya & Alamelu, 2019).In addition to having trouble expressing their views in the text (Bilal et al., 2013), students frequently struggle with vocabulary grammar, and syntax (Fareed et al., 2016).Sometimes, internal elements, such as the students' personalities, affect their writing abilities (Faisal, 2019).Personality traits contribute to a language learner's success (Brown, 2000).Each student has a distinct personality that differs from that of other students, which frequently poses a challenge because different learning outcomes are expected of each student (Dewaele, 2005).Extrovert and introvert personalities are examined in this article since they are the most-studied personality traits in language education research.
An extrovert, as defined by Zhang (2009), is someone who would rather focus on the actions of others than reflect on his feelings and ideas.A person who is an extrovert learns about the world mostly via their interactions with others and through shared experiences, rather than through introspection or analysis.An introvert, on the other hand, is more focused within than outward and is often reserved and reluctant to participate in group activities or speak in front of a crowd.Similar to how Brown (2000) characterizes an introvert, an extroverted person needs the approval of others to feel complete.The difference between an extrovert and an introvert is the degree to which the former finds meaning and completion in things other than the approval of those around them.They need the stimulation of others to function, hence extroverts are often the last to leave a party.The opposite is true for introverts, who thrive with minimal social interaction outside of a tight-knit group of friends and alone time (Adamopoulos, 1982).
Learning a new language has always favored extroverted people.According to linguists like Brown (2000), extroverts are superior language learners because they have more chances to use the provided data and produce more output, making them better able to learn the language.Extroverts, who tend to be more successful overall, should have an easier time picking up a new language than introverts."Extroversion is harmful to language development," Cook (2002) writes.Compared to introverts, extroverts have lower levels of cortical arousal, making them more vulnerable to mental distractions.Furthermore, introverts have a longer memory span than extroverted people do (Eysenck et al., 1981).In addition, Eysenck & Eysenck, (1985) discovered that introverts outperform extroverts in written research exams, which suggests that introverts are stronger language learners.The differences in behavior between the two groups can be traced back to these innate distinctions.
Different personality types tend to have varying degrees of success in writing, according to several studies.According to Sangkala, (2012), Students' Extraversion personality trait correlates significantly with their writing ability in the second semester of university.Research from Aquariza & Authar (2020) demonstrated that introverted student tends to write chronologically and in-depth, whereas extroverted student tends to write concisely and expressively.Students' ability to write persuasive essays also correlates with their level of extroversion, as suggested by the research of Marwa & Thamrin (2016).More extroverted students received a perfect score on the argumentative essay than introverted students.However, research (Zainuddin, 2016) found that introverted EFL students outperformed their extroverted peers in sentence production (syntax).In addition, they showed introverts outscored extroverts significantly in all writing components, except the grouping and structuring of their writing (Boroujeni et al., 2015).Additionally, introverted personality types have superior writing skills compared to extroverted personality types (Sutrisno et al., 2018).In contrast, Azzuhria (2017) found no correlation or influence between personality type and the writing performance of undergraduate EFL students.Similarly, Zafar et al. (2017) revealed that students with high extroversion scores perform better in speaking and reading, whereas introverts perform better in listening.However, none of these personality traits was significantly correlated with writing ability.
Since earlier studies have yielded conflicting results, the current investigation investigates whether there is a correlation between students' personalities and their skills in writing across a range of instruments and subjects.This research is essential because it is anticipated that by understanding their personality type, students will be able to improve their ability to write and their writing performance.In addition, teachers can use this knowledge to motivate students with various personality traits to write more and to modify class activities with appropriate strategies to improve students' mastery of writing skills during the learning process.This is because teachers should give more attention to writing and provide effective teaching and learning techniques to enhance student skills (Wahyuni et al., 2020).Therefore, the goal of this study is to determine whether there is a correlation between the personalities of English Department students at Universitas Tidar and their mastery of writing skills.This research is expected to be beneficial for further research, especially regarding the students' personality and writing skills.

METHODS
Regarding research studies, methodology is strongly associated with them.A research method, according to Sugiyono ( 2011) is a scientific strategy for collecting data for specific purposes.It is a crucial component that cannot be eliminated from a research study.In this study, correlational methodology was utilized.The correlation method investigates the association between variables (Arikunto, 2007).The statistical correlation test is used to define and assess the level of correlation (or relationship) between two or more variables or score sets in correlational research designs (Creswell, 2012).Researchers in this study did not seek to manipulate or control any of the variables.However, they used correlation statistics to find an association between the participants' scores on two or more measures.Students from Universitas Tidar in Magelang, Indonesia comprised the research population.Thirty-eight English Education majors were selected as representative samples.They come from different backgrounds and have unique personalities.All of them consist of 19-to 22-year-old males and females.
Twenty-five items from the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) indicators questionnaire were used in this research (Akhtar & Azwar, 2018).It consists of questions about personality traits to determine the extroversion score of the participants.Participants with low extroversion scores will be classified as introverts, while those with high scores will be classified as extroverts.The participants' writing abilities were determined by their mid-semester test scores in an essay writing course.Data on extroversion and data on writing skills are thus both quantifiable.There were two stages of analysis for these data.At first, we had to manually assess and merge the data from the personality questionnaire with the students' writing results.The data was then analyzed using Pearson Product Moment to establish a correlation between the variables of interest.The data was analyzed using two ways, using manual and SPSS version 25.The answer to the problem is derived from a comparison of the Null Hypothesis (H0) and the Alternative Hypothesis (H1).In this study, we hypothesize as follows.Two hypotheses are tested: (H1) University students' personalities have a correlation to their mastery of writing skills, and (H0) University students' personalities do not have a correlation to their mastery of writing skills.

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
After the researcher gathered the data, the students' extroversion scores from International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) questionnaires and their writing scores are presented in the table below:  The purpose of this study was to discover whether there is a correlation between university students' personalities and their writing skills.The Pearson Product Moment was employed to establish a correlation between the two quantitative data sets.The analysis of Table 1 concluded that N (38), X (571), Y (2976), X2 (9033), Y2 (235304), and XY (44540).Finally, it was determined that the correlation coefficient (r) had a value of -0.177.To increase the validity of the result, the researcher also evaluated the data using SPSS as shown in the table below:  According to the numbers, the calculated range for the correlation coefficient is between -0.1 to -0.2.Consequently, the coefficient is suggestive of a "Weak" correlation.The correlation between university students' personalities and their writing skills is weak at best.Furthermore, the finding reflected a negative direction for the association investigated.According to Arkkelin (2014), whether the r value is positive (+) or negative (-), the sign of the r value makes the direction very evident (-).When one variable predicts another positively, it suggests that the two are highly correlated.A negative correlation, on the other hand, indicates a correlation between extremes of one measure and the other.In this analysis, the correlation coefficient is -0.177.It indicates that students with high personality scores also tend to have lower writing abilities, and vice versa.However, this correlation is still classified as "Weak," with zero being a plausible interpretation.Based on the explanation, it can be concluded that the alternative hypothesis (H1) is still accepted, while the null hypothesis (H0) is rejected.Therefore, university students' personalities correlate with their mastery of writing skills.
As explained previously, personality can be classified into two categories: extrovert and introvert.Each category possesses characteristics.However, the instrument used in this study, the IPIP personality questionnaire, only gives a score in the form of extroversion.Nevertheless, the extroversion score presented by this questionnaire has already related to the quantity and intensity of interpersonal interaction, the activities carried out, the need for stimulation, doing things that please, social interest, and confidence.Based on IPIP-Big Five Factor Markers 25, individuals with a high score tend to be active, optimistic, sociable, and enthusiastic and prefer large groups.These characteristics represent someone who has an extroverted personality.On the contrary, individuals with low scores tend to be introverted, quiet, authoritative, focused on tasks, and prefer standing alone or with a few close friends (Akhtar & Azwar, 2018).These characteristics are also closely related to someone who has an introverted personality.That means when person A gets a higher extroversion score, a higher possibility that he/she is an extrovert.In other words, an individual who got a high score can be considered an extrovert and the other who got a low score belongs to an introvert.
Compared to the previous study, such as Marwa & Thamrin (2016) which successfully demonstrated that more extroverted students earned greater argumentative essay grades than introverted students.Also, according to a 2016 study by Zainuddin, introverted EFL students build sentences better than extroverted EFL students (syntax).Both previous studies can successfully determine whether extroverts and introverts have a certain influence on writing skills.
Meanwhile, this present study only limited the fact that students' personality correlates with their mastery of writing skills.This present study needs to answer the question about which is superior between introverts and extroverts in a particular writing skill.It is clear from this study's result that the more students' extroversion scores, the less their writing mastery.On the other words, high-extroversion score students have better writing skills than low-extroversion scores, even though it is so subtle.In addition, Brown (2000) suggested that extroversion plays a role in the development of general oral communicative skills, which is dependent on faceto-face interaction but not on listening, reading, and writing.Since the correlation between the two variables is "weak," this finding shows that the hypothesis contradicts the findings of this theory, although not significantly.This study's findings are consistent with those of Zafar et al. (2017) and Azzuhria (2017), who found no significant correlation between writing abilities and personality traits.Therefore, future comprehensive studies with a larger and more diverse sample size are required to produce clearer and more extensive findings on this topic.
In conclusion, where there is a correlation between the two analyzed variables that indicated the high-extroversion score students have better writing skills than low-extroversion scores, the researcher suggested some implications of the results of this study to language teaching.Firstly, the teacher does not just teach in class but also must be able to identify the personality of the students that unquestionably various backgrounds and provide what students need based on the results of observations of their personality.In this case, it means that the teacher must choose the right teaching approach by considering the differences in the personalities of these students.But it does not mean that teachers can teach by discriminating against them.The teachers should consider equality and togetherness.If necessary, teachers can try many learning strategies until they find which strategy is most suitable and effective, in this case, for teaching writing.Apart from that, teachers can also try to look for other factors that affect students' mastery of writing skills, since the results of this study only showed a "weak" correlation between students' personality and their writing mastery.

CONCLUSION
The results of this study indicated that there is a correlation between university students' personality and their mastery of writing skills.According to the analysis, the correlation coefficient indicated on -0.177 value.H1 is proven to be accepted, but the correlation between the two variables is still relatively weak.In addition, since the correlation coefficient is negative, it means that the high-extroversion score students have better writing skills than those with low-extroversion scores.Still, further research is needed to make a clearer and broader analysis since this study showed a contrasting result to some studies.It is also hoped that with this research, teachers can become good facilitators for their students.The teacher can provide learning strategies that adapt to all the personalities of students in their class so that they can produce effective learning, especially teaching writing.
students' extroversion scores Y = distribution of students' writing skills ∑X = sum of students' extroversion scores ∑Y = sum of students' writing skills ∑X2 = sum of the squared scores in X distribution ∑Y2 = sum of the squared scores in Y distribution ∑XY = sum of X and Y distribution

Table 1 . The Student's Result
(Ary et al., 2010)on Product Moment formulas(Ary et al., 2010), here is the description of each symbol used in the table above: