Second Language Learning and Teaching

Nourollah Zarrinabadi
Saeed Ketabi
Mansoor Tavakoli

Directed
Motivational
Currents in L2
Exploring the Effects on Self and
Communication
Second Language Learning and Teaching

Series editor
Mirosław Pawlak, Kalisz, Poland

BUTUH LENGKAP HUB

rehanjanda@gmail.com
About the Series

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Nourollah Zarrinabadi Saeed Ketabi
•

Mansoor Tavakoli

Directed Motivational
Currents in L2
Exploring the Effects on Self
and Communication

123
Nourollah Zarrinabadi Mansoor Tavakoli
Department of English University of Isfahan
University of Isfahan Isfahan, Iran
Isfahan, Iran

Saeed Ketabi
Department of English
University of Isfahan
Isfahan, Iran

ISSN 2193-7648 ISSN 2193-7656 (electronic)

Second Language Learning and Teaching
ISBN 978-3-030-05471-7 ISBN 978-3-030-05472-4 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05472-4

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018963987

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019

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To Pahleh
Acknowledgements

This work would have been impossible without the support of the Faculty of
Foreign Languages and Department of English Language and Literature at the
University of Isfahan, Iran. The authors admit that this book is the published
version of Nourollah Zarrinabadi’s PhD dissertation study conducted under the
supervision of Saeed Ketabi and Mansoor Tavakoli in December, 2017. We thank
professor Miroslaw Pawlak and the publication office in Springer for their con-
structive comments on the earlier versions of the book. We are also indebted to the
officials who supported the conduct of this study. We particularly wish to thank Mr.
Khalilzadeh as the Head of Mousian Office of Education, who granted the neces-
sary permission to conduct the study and introduced the high schools at which we
performed the study. We also thank the principals who helped us identify the
participants of the study. We are grateful to Mr. Ali Bokhat and Mr. Seyyed
Fathollah Mousvi, who helped us identify particularly motivated students and gave
us the facilities we needed to conduct the interviews. Finally, we need to particu-
larly thank the participants of the study who shared their stories and patiently
answered my questions.

vii
Contents

1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Motivation in L2 Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Directed Motivational Currents (DMCs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 The Focus of This Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.4 Objectives of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.5 Key Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.6 Organization of the Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2 Directed Motivational Currents (DMC) in L2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.2 A Brief Overview of L2 Motivation Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.3 Directed Motivational Currents (DMCs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.3.1 The Core Characteristics of DMCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.3.2 Triggering and Launch of DMCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.3.3 DMCs and Mainstream Motivation Theories . . . . . . . . . 16
2.3.4 DMCs and Other Individual Differences . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2.4 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
3 Willingness to Communicate (WTC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.2 Origin of WTC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.3 WTC in L2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.3.1 Situational Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.3.2 Stable Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.4 Research Studies on L2 WTC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
3.5 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
4 Language Learner Autonomy, Self-confidence, Self-concept . . . . . . . 33
4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
4.2 Language Learner Autonomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

ix
x Contents

4.2.1 Language Learner Autonomy: Theoretical Issues ...... 35

4.2.2 Empirical Research on Language Learner
Autonomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
4.3 L2 Self-confidence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
4.3.1 Definition of L2 Self-confidence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
4.3.2 Research on L2 Self-confidence and SLA . . . . . . . . . . . 39
4.4 Language Learner Self-concept . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.4.1 Studies on Language Learners’ Self-concepts . . . . . . . . . 44
4.5 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
5 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.2 Setting of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
5.3 Participants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
5.4 Design of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
5.5 Data Collection Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
5.5.1 Motivational Graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.5.2 Semi-structured Interviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.5.3 Stimulated Recalls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
5.5.4 Piloting Interview Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
5.6 Qualitative Data Collection and Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
5.6.1 Preparing and Organizing the Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
5.6.2 Reducing the Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
5.6.3 Coding and Category Developing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
5.6.4 Quality Criteria for Qualitative Research . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
5.6.5 Ethical Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
5.7 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
6 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
6.2 Identified Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
6.3 Motivational Intensity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
6.4 Vision/Goal-Orientedness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
6.5 A Salient, Facilitative Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
6.5.1 Recurring Behavioral Routines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
6.5.2 Regular Checks Where Subgoals Provided Affirmative
Feedback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
6.5.3 Explicit Turning Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
6.5.4 Positive Emotionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
6.6 Triggering and Launch of DMCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
6.7 Changes to WTC During a DMC Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
6.8 Changes to L2 Self-confidence During a DMC Experience . . . . . 82
6.9 Changes to Language Learner Autonomy During a DMC
Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 84
Contents xi

6.10 Changes to Self-concept During a DMC Experience . . . . . . . . . . 86

6.10.1 DMCs Change Certainty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
6.10.2 DMCs Change Affective Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
6.10.3 DMCs Change Positivity and Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
6.11 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
7 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
7.1 Pedagogical Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
7.2 Directions for Further Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
7.3 Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Appendix A: Teachers’ Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Appendix B: DMCs Interview Protocol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Appendix C: WTC, Autonomy, Self-confidence and Self-confidence
Interview Protocol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Appendix D: Informed Consent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Appendix E: School Permission Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Abbreviations

DMCs Directed Motivational Currents

ESL English as a Second Language
EFL English as a Foreign Language
L1 First Language
L2 Second Language
WTC Willingness to Communicate

xiii
List of Figures

Fig. 3.1 MacIntyre et al.’s (1998) pyramid model of L2 WTC . . ....... 21

Fig. 4.1 Components of L2 self-confidence
in MacIntyre et al. (1998) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 39
Fig. 5.1 The schematic representation of different stages
of participant recruitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 52
Fig. 5.2 Trianguation used in the study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 60
Fig. 6.1 Malek’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 64
Fig. 6.2 Amir’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 64
Fig. 6.3 Jasem’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 65
Fig. 6.4 Javad’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 65
Fig. 6.5 Asma’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 66
Fig. 6.6 Reza’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 67
Fig. 6.7 Hamid’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 67
Fig. 6.8 Kosar’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 68
Fig. 6.9 Ali’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 68
Fig. 6.10 Zeinab’s self-assessed motivational trajectory
(Intense sustained motivation ringed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 69

xv
List of Tables

Table 3.1 Quantitative research studies on L2 WTC

(Zarrinabadi & Tanbakooei, 2016) printed with permission . . .. 25
Table 3.2 Qualitative studies conducted on L2 WTC
(Zarrinabadi & Tanbakooei, 2016) printed with permission . . .. 28
Table 3.3 Mixed methods studies conducted on L2 WTC
(Zarrinabadi & Tanbakooei, 2016) printed with permission . . .. 30
Table 5.1 Background information of the teachers and their classes . . . . .. 51
Table 5.2 Demographic information of the study participants . . . . . . . . . .. 54

xvii
Chapter 1
Introduction

1.1 Motivation in L2 Learning

Motivation is an important aspect of any human endeavour. It is generally believed

that, if motivated, individuals will invest more time, energy, and persistence to
reach their goals (Atkinson & Raynor, 1974; Elliot, 2008). It is also a common
sense notion among people that one has to be motivated in order to achieve goals,
something which has been extensively ratified by a voluminous bulk of research in
different disciplines (De Volder & Lens, 1982; Dweck, 1985; Elliot, 2008). In more
than half of a century, motivation has been the subject of heated debates among
language educators and researchers interested in applied linguistics and related
fields (Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2009, 2011). The advent of this notion to language
learning and teaching literature dates back to the seminal work of Gardner and
Lambert (1959) who explored the role of motivational factors in second language
acquisition (SLA). Gardner and Lambert (1959) tried to present a novel perspective
on motivation in a second language (L2 Motivation) which was basically rooted in
the axiom that the discipline of language teaching was distinct from teaching other
subject matters in that there was a social group of language users. A significant
contribution of Gardner and Lambert’s (1959) study was the introduction of the
notions of integrative and instrumental motivation (Anisfeld & Lambert, 1964;
Gardner, 1960, 1985; Gardner & Lambert, 1972; Lambert, Gardner, Barik, &
Tunstall, 1963). As Gardner and Lambert (1972) explain, these clusters of reasons
for learning an L2 were instrumental in case the goals of language study related to
the more utilitarian value of language achievement, for instance, getting ahead in
one’s job. On the contrary, the orientation is integrative if the learner wishes to
learn more about the other cultural community because of the fact that he/she is
keen on it in an open-minded way, to the state of being accepted as a member of the
target group.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 1

N. Zarrinabadi et al., Directed Motivational Currents in L2, Second Language
Learning and Teaching, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05472-4_1
2 1 Introduction

Later, the notion of integrative motivation became one of the most studied issues
in SLA, and because of its identification the massive majority of research studies
have involved this variable as a core one (Csizér & Dörnyei, 2005b).
A considerable bulk of empirical studies exploring integrative motivation can be
found in the Western settings where it originated (e.g. Clément & Kruidenier, 1983,
1985; Csizér & Dörnyei, 2005b; Gardner, 2012; Gardner, Day, & MacIntyre, 1992;
Gardner & MacIntyre, 1991; Hernández, 2006, 2008). Additionally, Gardner’s
socio educational framework has been substantiated in diverse contexts all over the
world (e.g. Clément, Dörnyei, & Noels, 1994; Dörnyei, 1990; Gardner, 2012;
Shaaban & Ghaith, 2000). Empirical studies tended to corroborate the idea that
integrative motivation exerts a stronger impact on behaviour and achievement than
instrumental motivation (e.g. Gardner & MacIntyre, 1991; Gardner, Masgoret,
Tennant, & Mihic, 2004; Lukmani, 1972; Masgoret & Gardner, 2003), though it
was nevertheless demonstrated that instrumental motivation plays a pivotal role,
especially in a foreign language learning context (e.g. Belmechri & Hummel, 1998;
Dörnyei, 1990; Gardner & MacIntyre, 1991; Kraemer, 1993; Warden & Lin, 2000).
Afterwards, the field of L2 motivation witnessed emergence and application of
different notions and ideas (see Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2011). The last few decades
have witnessed the birth of various L2 motivational theories and viewpoints. With
the advent of the cognitive-situated period, diverse cognitive theories were assorted
and applied to the understanding of L2 motivation (Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2011). In
this period, Noels and her colleagues (Noels, Clément, & Pelletier, 2001; Noels,
Pelletier, Clément, & Vallerand, 2000) adapted self-determination theory
(SDT) (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Deci, 2000) to L2 learning literature.
Additionally, several expectancy-value theories which emphasized the role of
individual’s expectations on how well they would do on a task and how much value
they attached to goal achievement were introduced into L2 motivation research
(Weiner, 1985; Williams & Burden, 1999). Motivation as a process, or
process-oriented L2 motivating, was a model by Dörnyei and Ottó (1998) which
emphasized the role of time and hinged on the ideas of Heckhausen (1991).
The third millennium witnessed the birth of new viewpoints into L2 motivation
research. In the first decade of the 21th century, Dörnyei and his colleagues proposed
the idea of L2 motivational self-system which dealt with possible selves and future
self-guides in learning an L2 (Csizér & Dörnyei, 2005a, 2005b; Dörnyei & Csizér,
2002, Dörnyei, Csizér, & Németh, 2006; Kormos & Csizér, 2008). This new view-
point postulated existence of three possible selves, namely ideal L2 self, ought-to L2
self, and the L2 learning experience and gained strong support from diverse contexts
such as Hungary, China, Japan, and Iran (Csizér & Kormos, 2009; Ryan, 2009; Ryan
& Dörnyei, 2013; Taguchi, Majid, & Papi, 2009). Another interesting development
was the introduction of the tenets of complex dynamic systems (de Bot, Lowie, &
Versppor, 2007a, 2007b; Ellis & Larsen-Freeman, 2006; Larsen-Freeman &
Cameron, 2008) to L2 motivation research (Dörnyei, MacIntyre, & Henry, 2015). The
dynamic view of L2 motivation considered L2 motivation as a continuously changing
and evolving entity rather than a fixed and unchanging trait (Dörnyei et al., 2014).
1.2 Directed Motivational Currents (DMCs) 3

1.2 Directed Motivational Currents (DMCs)

One of the most recent developments in the field of L2 motivation research is the
idea of Directed Motivational Currents (abbreviated as DMC or DMCs). Dörnyei,
Ibrahim, and Muir (2015, p. 98) defined the DMCs as a prolonged period of
engagement in a sequence of tasks which are pleasant mainly because they transport
the person towards a highly valued goal. Dörnyei and his colleagues (2015;
Dörnyei, Henry, & Muir, 2016) consider three main characteristics for DMCs,
namely, goal/vision-orientedness, a salient facilitative structure, and positive
emotionality. In this motivational framework, goal/vision-orientedness referred to
the fact that DMCs are directional in nature and are directed at a well-defined final
goal such as being a proficient L2 learner and user. Including a clear goal is
necessary for the launch of a DMC and helps the individual to purposefully employ
energy and make attempts (Dörnyei, Muir, & Ibrahim, 2014; Muir & Dörnyei,
2013). Henry, Davydenko, and Dörnyei (2015) stated that having a goal or vision
had a gravitational effect on motivational energy and directs the behaviour toward
performing tasks which enhance the possibility of goal achievement. Furthermore,
having a goal/vision channels the energy away from events and actions that com-
pete for the individual’s time.
A salient recognizable, facilitative structure is the second main feature of DMCs.
The structure of a DMC functions as a route map that pinpoints the pathway
towards ultimate goal achievement. This structures creates opportunities for feed-
back and progress checkings that help keep the motivational momentum. Dörnyei
et al. (2014, 2016) propose that there is a successful match between the well-defined
target goal or vision and an adequately tailored pathway. İn a DMC, adequately
tailored pathway denotes the presence of three core components in the structure.
These are (a) establishment of recurring behavioral routines, (b) clearly recogniz-
able start/end points, and (c) presence of regular progress checks. When experi-
encing in a DMC, individuals develop some behavioral routines which reappear in
the course of their DMC experience (Dörnyei et al., 2014; Muir & Dörnyei, 2013).
This means that the individual is involved in doing some regularly recurring
activities with no specific volitional control or motivational processing (Muir &
Dörnyei, 2013). A DMC also entails clearly identifiable start and end points.
Dörnyei et al. (2015) mention that DMCs are consciously and explicitly launched
via some specific triggers and do not simply drift into being. Hence, existence of
regular progress checks is the second central component of the DMCs salient and
facilitative structure (Dörnyei et al., 2014, 2015, 2016; Muir & Dörnyei, 2013).
The DMC is also accompanied by experiencing supportive and positive feelings.
Dörnyei et al. (2016) argue that when individuals make efforts in pursuit of their
desired goal/vision, everything that simplifies and facilitates goal achievement
becomes favorable and pleasant. They add that this is due to the fact that suc-
cessfully completed subgoals create positive and favorable emotion which, in turn,
cause further energy and push the motivational momentum toward the target goal.
Also, Dörnyei et al. (2016) think that engaging in DMCs is accompanied with
4 1 Introduction

positive feelings and emotions owing to the fact that individuals are doing activities
which are both useful and meaningful, and of course, helps then attain their ultimate
goal. Within the DMC framework, however, the role or the dynamics of other
individual differences (ID) factors involved in learning an L2 is not assessed,
something which paved the way for doing this study. This rationale is explained in
more details in the following subsection.

1.3 The Focus of This Book

Many language instructors have encountered language learners who are unusually
motivated to learn an L2 (e.g., English). These learners seem to be intensely moti-
vated, change their studying timetable, develop new routines, and be content with
making attempts for their desired ends. Surprisingly, investigation of such times of
high and intense motivation in pursuit of a particular goal remained understudied
until quite recently (Dörnyei et al., 2014, 2015, 2016; Muir & Dörnyei, 2013).
Dörnyei and his colleagues (Dörnyei et al., 2014, 2015, 2016; Muir & Dörnyei,
2013) suggested that the DMCs framework could account for such goal-oriented
motivational experiences. While an interesting construct with suggestions for lan-
guage learning and instruction research and practice, the published studies on DMCs
have been mainly theoretical (Dörnyei et al., 2014, 2015, 2016; Muir & Dörnyei,
2013), and only a few published works have offered empirical data to reinforce the
validity of the construct (Dörnyei et al., 2016; Muir, 2016; Zarrinabadi & Tavakoli,
2016), explore the triggering and launch of a DMC experience, and examine its main
characteristics. This study, as such, aimed to investigate the existence of such
motivational experience among Iranian EFL learners to understand how a DMC is
triggered and launched, and to explore whether the key characteristics of DMCs
could be detected in language learners’ experiences in Iran. Furthermore, although
Dörnyei et al. (2016) claim that language learners who experience a DMC could
have an amalgamation of several positive emotions, they do not present any evi-
dence whether these feelings exert any impact on learners willingness to take part in
language learning situations [willingness to communicate (WTC)], their
self-confidence to use their L2, their perceptions of their self-concept, and the extent
to which they independently try to learn English inside and outside the classroom
context (language learner autonomy).
The authors believe that the findings of this study could present some new
information on motivation and other individual differences (e.g., WTC,
self-confidence) which may be useful for both research and practice in the field. The
results of this study could be helpful in that they can give us information about
intense motivation in short periods of time. Dörnyei et al. (2016) believe that, given
more information on nature of DMCs, it is possible to generate DMCs at group
level. The results of this study could shed more light on the nature of DMCs, and
therefore, provide implications on how to create DMCs in the language classrooms
or among groups of language learners.
1.3 The Focus of This Book 5

Moreover, several mainstream individual differences such as autonomy, WTC,

self-confidence, and language learner autonomy are examined in the time of a DMC
experience. Therefore, the results of this research study may have implications on
how to improve learners’ affective variables in definite periods of time. In other
words, the findings of this study may provide insights for developing motivational
plans that help students to act more independently for learning English both inside
and outside the classroom context. Also, this study can provide language teachers
with ideas for enhancing their learners’ WTC and self-confidence, two variables
that have been found to be strong predictors of amount of L2 communication
(Clément, Baker, & MacIntyre, 2003).

1.4 Objectives of the Study

Although some studies have been reported on the theoretical bases of the DMC
construct (Dörnyei et al., 2014, 2016), very few ones have aimed to provide
empirical data in any systematic way to corroborate the validity of the key ideas of
DMCs (Dörnyei et al., 2016; Henry et al., 2015). This study aims to describe high
and intense motivational experiences of Iranian EFL language learners, consider the
extent to which the key concepts in the DMCs framework proposed by Dörnyei and
his colleagues can explain highly motivated EFL learners’ stories, and conse-
quently, assess the validity of DMCs construct.
Moreover, this study examines whether experiencing a DMC results in any
change in students’ non-linguistic characteristics which involve individual differ-
ence variables of WTC, L2 self-confidence, autonomy, and self-concept.

1.5 Key Concepts

The main concepts involved in this study are defined and explained in the following
subsections.
L2 Motivation
Dörnyei and Ottó (1998, p. 85) defined L2 motivation “as the dynamically
changing cumulative arousal in a person that initiates, directs, coordinates, ampli-
fies, terminates, and evaluates the cognitive and motor processes whereby initial
wishes and desires are selected, prioritised, operationalized and successfully or
unsuccessfully acted out”.
Directed Motivational Currents (DMCs)
A Directed Motivational Current (DMC) is defined as an extended process of
engagement in a series of activities or tasks that are rewarding chiefly for they
6 1 Introduction

transport the person towards a highly valued goal (Dörnyei, Henry, & Muir, 2016).
In this study, a DMC refers to a sudden burst of motivational energy over a distinct
period of time characterized by having a specific target goal, positive emotionality,
and salient facilitative structure.
Willingness to Communicate (WTC)
MacIntyre, Clément, Dörnyei, and Noels (1998) define it as “a readiness to enter
into discourse at a particular with a specific person or persons, using a L2’’ (p. 547).
In this study, WTC refers to students’ willingness to engage in L2 interactions by
both initiating and resuming communication in English.
L2 Self-Confidence
L2 self-confidence is defined by MacIntyre et al. (1998) as “the overall belief in
being able to communicate in the L2 in an adaptive and efficient manner” (p. 551).
In this study, L2 self-confidence refers to the students’ confidence for using
English.
L2 Self-Concept
An individual’s self-concept refers to the beliefs one has about oneself and one’s
self-perceptions (Mercer, 2011a, 2011b). In this study it refers to the student’s
picture of oneself and what one thinks to be true about oneself.
Language Learner Autonomy
This concept points to learners’ realizing their goals of learning, accepting
responsibility for their development, and take part in deciding the goals of learning
(Little, 1990). In this study, it refers to the students’ independence and being
responsible in learning English as their L2.

1.6 Organization of the Book

The organization of this book is as follows: This chapter presents an introduction to

the study. In so doing, the chapter presents a brief background, the statement of the
problem, the objectives and the significance of the study, and definition of key
terms of the study.
Chapters 2, 3 and 4 review the related theoretical underpinnings and the
empirical literature related to the study. These chapters refer to the finding of the
studies that have already been conducted on motivation, DMCs and ID variables
examined within DMC experiences (i.e., WTC, autonomy, self-confidence, and
self-concept). In this chapter, the most relevant studies in the Iranian context are
reported as well.
Chapter 5 presents the methodology of the study. In this chapter, the features of
the context and sample of the study, the data collection tools used to gather data, the
1.6 Organization of the Book 7

data gathering procedure are described. The methodological issues related to the
specific qualitative approach used in the study are presented in this chapter. Chapter
6 reports the empirical findings of the study. In this chapter the results of the data
analyses are reported through giving excerpts of data.
Chapter 7 presents the concluding section of the study. In this chapter the finding
of the study are discussed in detail and the conclusions are given. Moreover, this
chapter presents the implications for further research and practice in the field, as
well as the limitations of the study.
Chapter 2
Directed Motivational Currents
(DMC) in L2

2.1 Introduction

This chapter presets the theoretical underpinnings on L2 motivation and Directed

Motivational Currents (DMCs). First, a brief overview of research on L2 motivation
is presented. Then, the DMC construct, its core characteristics, and the theories
related to it are explained in detail.

2.2 A Brief Overview of L2 Motivation Research

The study of motivation for learning an L2 started with the work of Gardner and
Lambert (1972). This branch of motivation research in language learning was called
social-psychological period mainly led by Gardner and his associates (Gardner,
1985, 2001, 2010; Gardner & Lambert, 1972). The main premise of this view was
that L2 learning was different from other study topics as it also needed openness to
the L2 community and readiness to accept some of its features. This notion was
later conceptualized as integrative motivation (Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2011). Based
on the studies and criticisms leveled against his idea, Gardner revised his ideas to
take the role of affective factors into account as well. He categorized his research on
L2 motivation into three phases (Gardner, 2010). The first one was ancient phase,
dating from 1945 to 1972, which mainly included his Gardner MA and Ph.D. theses
and the work with Lambert (Gardner & Lambert, 1972). Gardner called the second
phase as the early history (Gardner, 2010) which occurred in 1970s and early
1980s. During the second phase, Clément, Gardner and Smythe (1980) received
financial support to launch a research group and did studies in the Canada context
(Al-Hoorie, 2017). Lastly, Gardner named the last period as modern history in
which he places the studies done in the 1980s. Gardner and his colleagues, in these
three periods, were involved in a drastically prolific research program, leading to

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 9

N. Zarrinabadi et al., Directed Motivational Currents in L2, Second Language
Learning and Teaching, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05472-4_2