From conflicts to integration: An empirical study on chinese efl learners’ construction of bilingual identities

Abstract

By adopting both quantitative and qualitative methods, this paper, with the types of bilingual identities (Yongwei B & Yihong G,2006) serving as the framework, examines the characteristics of Chinese college English learners' bilingual identity changes. It is found that instrumental bilingual identity penetrates through L2 learning process, additive and productive bilingual identity are dominant types among L2 English learners; the bilingual identity construction of EFL learners may assume the following process: instrumental bilingual identity, subtractive and split bilingual identity, additive and productive bilingual identity. The study indicates the conflicts and integration of bilingual identities experienced by L2 English learners in China.