Investigating Language Learning Motivation from an Ideal Language-Self Perspective: The Case of English Majors in Poland

Abstract

Motivation is without doubt one of the most important factors in successful language learning, not least because it can to a large extent compensate for deficiencies in language aptitude, irrespective of the ways in which it is concep- tualized. It is thus not surprising that this individual difference variable has been subject to numerous empirical investigations undertaken from a range of theoretical perspectives. As Dörnyei (2005) explains, such research has entered a process-oriented period, where motivation is viewed as a dynamic phenomenon, constantly undergoing fluctuations in response to an array of influences. One recent theory representing this approach is the theory of the ideal language self (Dörnyei, 2005, 2009, 2014), according to which motivation to learn a foreign language largely stems from a desire to reduce the distance between one’s actual and imagined skills and abilities. The theory provided a point of reference for designing a questionnaire used for the purpose of the study reported in the present paper and administered to 220 Polish university students majoring in English. The tool, which included 40 six-point Likert-scale statements, sought to tap into such aspects of motivation as interest in international vocation or activities, encouragement from parents or significant others, intended learning effort, instrumentality, L2 self-confidence, ideal L2 self, lack of fear of assimilation, attitudes to learning English, interest in foreign languages and lack of ethnocentrism. The results indi- cate that the participants are highly motivated to learn English and provide important insights into the nature of their motives.