The above brief review underscores the value of needs analysis, particularly the input from domain experts, in identifying the English communication needs within a particular context. The first concern when designing a needs analysis study, therefore, is defining what is meant by needs. Hutchinson and Waters (1987) make the seminal distinction between target needs (the abilities required to function in the target situation) and learning needs (the route to acquire the abilities). Dudley-Evans and St John (1998) expand the above classification into a conceptual framework of needs analysis encompassing the following three key aspects of investigation:
Target Situations Analysis (TSA): the tasks and activities for which the learners are or will be using the target language;
Learning Situation Analysis (LSA): factors which may affect the way they learn (e.g., previous learning experiences, reasons for attending the courses, and expectations of them);
Present Situation Analysis (PSA): the learners' strengths and weaknesses in using the target language, or the extent of difficulty they encounter in performing the required tasks in the target language.
The merit of this framework is that in addition to linguistic requirements, it takes into account the personal and environmental factors associated with the target learner group and aims to understand them "as people, as language users and as language learners" (Dudley-Evans & St John, 1998, p. 126). This socio-cognitive dimension of needs analysis is crucial to ESP course design and test development. Hence, the above conceptual framework was used as the basis for designing the research questions and instruments for the present study.