Search

While the L2 Motivational Self System (L2MSS) has been extensively investigated among learners of English, this study explores through a crosslinguistic lens its applicability to learners of a language other than English (LOTE), in this case French. Quantitative survey analysis among 522 university learners of French and English in two European countries (Sweden and Poland) suggests that while the framework is relevant in the case of learners of French, other motivation constructs are also at play. The L2MSS supposedly subsumes various traditional motivational constructs (e.g. integrative orientation, instrumental orientation), yet there is evidence to suggest that these were perceived as distinct constructs in their own right, especially by the learners of French. Even a strong form of integrative orientation was found to play an active role among the learners of French who had spent time in a francophone country and had learnt the language for longer. As such, the article argues for a more comprehensive approach to second language (L2) motivation theory that is also sensitive to factors at play in the specific case of LOTEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Future second language (L2) self-images have proven integral to L2 motivation, prompting several attempts to purposefully develop learners' ideal L2 selves over the past decade through the use of vision-building techniques. Some of these 'vision interventions' have reported successfully enhancing learners' L2 self-images and motivation; other studies, however, diverge from an unqualified success narrative, citing for example a lack of increase in learner effort despite stronger future vision. Data collection has also been typically restricted to the period of the intervention itself, and so insight into the long-term take-up of the introduced techniques, or how potential outcomes develop over time, remains limited. To gain further understanding into such issues, we have charted the evolving nature of the L2 vision intervention over the past decade, and complemented the learning from previous studies by conducting a five-week vision-building course with 25 learners of English for academic purposes (EAP) in the UK university-pathway system. Interview data gathered over the course of 10 months – the longest investigation of vision-building we are aware of – demonstrated fluctuating engagement with visualization, and accordingly, our analysis looks critically at the notion of self-image-centred intervention in instructed second language acquisition (SLA). While we believe that L2 vision can indeed be consciously enhanced, we argue that success depends largely on how general principles are adapted to specific learning contexts. The discussion highlights challenges that instructors may encounter in staging such interventions, and offers practical lessons for using self-images in the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While there has been a surge of publication on L2 motivation studies, not much has been investigated regarding motivation to learn languages other than English. As a longitudinal interview study, the present study investigated two cases of Japanese university students focusing on the development of ideal L2/L3 self and ideal multilingual self. The results indicated that the development of ideal L2/L3 self was closely related to that of ideal professional self, and an elaborate ideal L2/L3 self helped learners persist and achieve high competence in the target languages. Furthermore, reading skills were considered especially important among the interviewees, which was not emphasised in contexts where learners have daily contact with the target languages. One of the interviewees was not negatively impacted by English and becoming multilingual, which seemed to be helped by a range of factors including ideal L2/L3 self, strong intrinsic motivation, and rich life experiences. The case demonstrated the possibility of developing an ideal multilingual self and becoming multilingual even in an era when English functions as a global language. Based on the results, theoretical and pedagogical implications that might be particularly helpful in foreign language contexts are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a highly important affective variable, motivation has always been a focus of research in second/foreign language (SL/FL) learning and proved to play a critical role in SL/FL learning. Even so, considering the complex and dynamic nature of SL/FL motivation, it always deserves research. Guided by the newly proposed framework of L2 Motivational Self System (Dörnyei, 2005, 2009), the present mixed-method study hence explored Chinese English majors’ L2 motivational self. One hundred and one English majors from a prestigious university in Beijing answered the questionnaire and 15 of them were interviewed in the present study. Analyses of the data revealed the following main findings: 1) the participants were generally highly motivated to learn English, had vivid images of themselves as proficient English users in the future, had positive appraisals of their L2 learning experiences, and had a moderately good perception of their ought-to L2 self, 2) senior students reported having significantly higher ideal L2 self and held more positive attitudes towards English learning experience. Based on these findings, some pedagogical implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

As an interdisciplinary science, SLA studies are receptive to ideas formulated in other disciplines. Although the relevance of psychology for SLA is often underestimated, its influence has recently grown with the advent of neurosciences and the increased interest in learner variables. One f concept from psychology that is potentially interesting is theories of the self, some of which have recently been adapted into research on foreign language learner motivation. In this article, we examine two particular psychological concepts (possible selves and self-discrepancy) as sources of an influential L2 motivation model -- Dörnyei's L2 Motivational Self System -- which is very little debated in French SLA literature. We outline the main points of the three theories, analyse them and try to assess the adaptation process. As in any case of transfer between disciplines, the source theories are altered, but the result has proven a meaningful and enriching addition to studies of L2 motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although ideal L2 self has been considered an importance source of L2 motivation, little empirical research has examined its specific properties and their motivational capacities. This study investigates how five properties of the ideal L2 self—centrality, accessibility, plausibility, vividness, and the existence of plans and strategies—predict two motivational criteria: the ideal L2 self's self-guiding role and general intended learning effort. It also proposes and tests an elaborateness scale for learners' descriptions of their ideal L2 selves in order to examine how descriptive elaborateness relates to the properties of the ideal L2 self and to motivation. Forty-four students wrote narratives about their ideal L2 self, and completed a questionnaire on specific aspects of the ideal L2 self and their motivation in general. The analysis finds only centrality to be a significant predictor for intention to learn, and only accessibility and plausibility to be significant predictors for the ideal L2 self's self-guiding role. The elaborateness of narratives was weakly related to a global ideal L2 self, as well as to the centrality and plausibility of the ideal L2 self. Elaborateness was also related to future intended learning effort, but not to the ideal L2 self's guiding role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite awareness of the important role of motivation in second/foreign language (L2) learning, a thorough investigation into the motivational influence on the L2 writing processes and products has been neglected. In an attempt to fill this research gap, the present study explored the effects of different types of L2 self-related motivation (ideal and ought-to L2 selves) drawn from the theory of the L2 motivational self system (Dörnyei, 2005) on writing strategy use and writing quality. Sixty-eight Korean undergraduates with a low level of overall English proficiency responded to questionnaires designed to measure their ideal and ought-to L2 selves and writing strategy use. They also completed a descriptive composition task aimed at assessing their writing quality. Regression analyses revealed that the ideal L2 self had a significant positive effect on both planning strategy use and writing outcomes, whereas the ought-to L2 self was merely correlated with revising strategy use. This study provides some empirical support for the potential of an idealized future L2 self-image to become a major determinant of writing processes and products. The results are discussed with reference to a promotion/prevention focus and a sensitivity of the ideal and ought-to L2 selves to positive/negative learning outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores adolescent students' attitudes toward learning English and other European languages studied at secondary school. The study is based on 2255 qualitative responses to a survey conducted in Bulgaria, Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain. The data reveal that, although differences between countries shape the experience of foreign language learning in different ways, students in all four countries are highly aware of the global status of English. This can be a positive stimulus for students' attitudes toward English but it can also negatively affect their attitudes toward learning other languages, as these can be perceived as less valuable. While perceived societal importance can differ from personal relevance and while identity issues, ability beliefs, contextual factors on the school and classroom level, as well as social-relational contexts (especially the relationship to the teacher) also play a role in shaping students' attitudes, the data demonstrate that macro-contextual factors exert considerable influence. They also suggest that more attention must be paid to stimulating positive attitudes toward language diversity and to fostering plurilingual aspirations in young Europeans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study focuses on the role of different theories when considered together in a foreign language other than English (LOTE) context. Specifically, the study examines (a) to what extent influential second language (L2) motivational theories, when integrated, explain motivation to learn LOTEs, and (b) how the powerful status of English in Japan affects learners' self- and identity-related motivation to learn LOTEs. Survey responses of 250 Japanese learners, who simultaneously learned a foreign LOTE and English as a required language, were analyzed using a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach. The results offer insight into how various coexisting social factors are connected to learners' multiple self- and identity-related orientations, which in turn predict several varied academic consequences (e.g., effort, attitude, and L2 ability). We also confirmed positive and negative interplay of English- and LOTE-related orientations such that the self- and identity-related orientations of the languages will play a competing role (e.g., Csizér & Lukács, 2010). This finding highlights the importance of taking sociopolitical perspectives into consideration in a context where learners learn two languages and one has a specific political presence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings from a study that examines the motivations of adult Australians of non-Italian origin to learn Italian in continuing education contexts in Sydney. The study embraces a view of motivation as a multifaceted phenomenon that is produced in a social environment through the interaction between the second language learners and the context in which they operate. The findings reveal that in the Australian multicultural context, the motivation to learn Italian is influenced by a process of negotiation of identity, triggered by both the presence of a well-established Italian migrant community, and the exposure to Italian cultural elements. Thus, the 'investment' of students in learning Italian may be generated by the desire to acquire some forms of symbolic capital rather than material resources, as in the case of other more 'global' languages (e.g., English). The willingness to invest in the acquisition of elements of symbolic capital indicates learners' desire to achieve goals related to self-growth and identity development, which in turn generates greater gains in wellbeing. Interviews with the participants also reveal that intrinsic factors, such as affiliation (with the target language speaking community, as well as with the community of learners in Sydney), and self-realization (correspondence with the ideal self-image of a competent language speaker), are key motivators for this group of students. The desire to belong to a community, of either speakers of Italian or like-minded people involved in the same learning trajectory, highlights the importance of cultivating meaningful relationships to increase individuals' wellbeing and to nurture a sense of attachment and affiliation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the ideal L2 self as the proposed key driver of self-motivation in L2 learning has received considerable scholarly attention over the past ten years, the conditions for its motivational capacity remain largely unexplored in empirical studies. This article details a quantitative measure that operationalizes the ideal L2 self in terms of specific properties that have been associated with its motivating capacity and links these with effort expended towards its attainment. The results of a study into the properties of the ideal L2 selves of 97 German upper-intermediate to advanced learners of English are discussed, in which levels of self-motivation to attain a specific ideal L2 self were most strongly associated with how frequently the ideal L2 self was envisioned, followed by the perceived present-future self-discrepancy and the extent to which this ideal L2 self was desired. Although the perceived plausibility of a specific ideal L2 self was also positively associated with effort expended towards its attainment, its unique contribution to predicting effort did not reach significance when the variance explained by the other properties was controlled for. The implications of these findings for researchers and language educators are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on the L2 Motivational Self System has drawn considerable attention in Second Language Acquisition. Previous studies have discussed the system itself, its basic concepts and their relationships to such affective variables as anxiety in various L2 learning contexts. The findings of these studies suggest that (1) having a clearer image of one's ideal L2 self might facilitate motivated L2 learning behaviour, (2) affective variables can promote or hinder learners' will to envision their ideal L2 selves, and (3) the system has both theoretical and pedagogical implications for L2 learner autonomy. The present survey study aimed to validate the system among Japanese English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners in two groups, whose learning contexts made it respectively easier and harder to formulate a clear image of an ideal L2 self. Survey data were analysed using multiple-group structural equation modelling. Results showed that the proposed model fitted both groups, but the relationships among variables in the model were different according to the group. The study also illustrated the dynamic interplay of affective variables (e.g. anxiety, self-efficacy) and the basic tenets of the system thereby providing us with useful insights into L2 learner autonomy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Within the framework of the L2 motivational self system, the present study investigates the temporal evolution of the motivational characteristics of Iranian learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) across three different populations: secondary school, high school, and university students. The data were collected from a number of 1,041 Iranian learners of English using a questionnaire survey specifically developed to be used in the context of Iran. The ANOVA results of the study showed that the promotion-focus variables (i.e. the ideal L2 self, L2 learning experience, instrumentality-promotion, attitudes towards L2 culture and community) generally improved with age up to entry into university; on the other hand, the variables with a preventional regulatory focus (i.e. the ought-to L2 Self, family influence, instrumentality-prevention) declined with age. In addition, the results of the multiple-regression analyses showed that only variables with a promotional orientation predicted motivated learning behavior and the factors predicting motivation and the ideal L2 self were different from the factors associated with the ought-to L2 self. The results are discussed based on the socio-educational context of Iran. The study provides strong evidence for a dynamic perspective towards L2 motivation and possible L2 selves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this paper is to explore how two different intervention programmes that were based on Dörnyei's L2 Motivational Self System succeeded in motivating Chinese university students to learn English by enhancing their vision of their Ideal L2 Self. One was a voluntary programme at a university in England, whereas the other was conducted within a compulsory credit-bearing English course at a university in Hong Kong. In spite of the differences between the two programmes, including the design of the interventions, the tasks employed, the length of the programmes and the types of students who participated in the study, the findings revealed that both programmes were effective in motivating the participants to learn English and increasing their linguistic self-confidence through strengthening their vision of their Ideal L2 Self, and making their goals clearer and more specific. Lessons learned from the two pioneering programmes and recommendations for future similar programmes will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

As L2 motivation and resilience have been found to play a critical role in second language learning, this study takes the initiative to investigate and verify the structural relationship between resilience, L2 learning motivation and L2 proficiency at beginner, intermediate and advanced level. To collect the data, the participants (N = 132 EFL learners) were administered a placement test and two questionnaires to rate their level of proficiency, resilience and L2 motivation, respectively. The results of Structural Equation Modeling analysis (SEM) revealed that L2 proficiency was directly influenced only by the beginners' L2 motivation. It was found that the intermediate learners' L2 proficiency was directly influenced by both L2 motivation and resilience. Conversely, the results indicated that the advanced students' L2 proficiency was directly impacted only by resilience. In addition, the study determined that L2 motivation has a significant indirect impact on L2 proficiency through resilience only at the advanced level. More generally, L2 proficiency was shown to be directly predictable by both L2 motivation and resilience, and L2 motivation was revealed to have significant direct and indirect effects on L2 proficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]